Humiliated Hawaiian Flower
by SiXingQui
Summary: This is an alternate ending to the season finale so there are some spoilers! After the events of the third season, Heather is left questioning herself and the people around her. Will her special someone be able to redeem himself in her eyes and more?
1. Cody and Sierra

AN: I absolutely adore Heather. A lot of people have contempt for her but I think this character is simply wonderful. So if you have a strong dislike for her, I suggest you exit from this page fast! I also feel the same way about Alejandro – those two were meant for each other! It's a shame we won't be seeing more of them from the Total Drama series.

Anyways, thanks for taking the time to visit this! I have another Alejandro/Heather fic I'd like to write, but I'm juggling two stories at the moment. I just wanted to write this bit after I finished watching the series online and I was rather unhappy with the ending. So this is an alternate take that isn't any better, but probably something easier to swallow than the canon ending. Not too sure how long this story will be as well – normally I plan out the chapters but we'll see how this rolls out.

If you haven't seen the entire season, I warn you there are spoilers for the ending! Continue on if you'd like to know who ends up in the final two and who wins (from this story's perspective) or try and finish watching the series before you read this!

Disclaimer: Total Drama World Tour belongs to its respective owners!

* * *

It was a week after it all happened. And it all just seemed too surreal. The fact I was in the final three for a short amount of time, the crazy and lethal challenges Chris came up with, and that accident. God. Talk about totally messed up and unexpected.

I wouldn't consider myself a real great friend of Heather's but she wasn't all that mean. Sure, she teased me a little too harshly on more than one occasion and tried to beat me with a sledgehammer in Sweden but we were allies. We were stuck on the same team since the beginning of third season and we had worked together to vote out Courtney more than once. And she had taken my pep talk seriously when she was stuck in that cage in Hawaii with Alejandro running off to get the prize money. Since when does Heather do that?

So when it all happened… I just couldn't _not_ visit her. Who else would? Sierra was with me, too. I looked up from the bouquet I had picked up for the visit to look at Sierra.

We were sitting in the waiting room, waiting for some professional looking doctor to usher us into the room. Sierra was idly humming herself the tune to one of the songs we sung during the show and was busying herself putting some final touches on her home made card. She smiled when she noticed my stare and squeezed my leg affectionately. She was still pretty creepy but things had toned down after she risked everything for me during the show and we became closer that I would have ever expected. She massaged the side of her head for a quick moment – probably checking to see if more hair had grown out in the past couple of days – and went back to humming a catchy tune with her hand fanning the wet glue on her card.

A doctor finally popped out after our thirty minute wait, looking somewhat disappointed as he scanned his clipboard with his patient's information.

"You're here for Ms. Yamamoto, right?" Sierra nodded at the doctor's question and he seemed slightly relieved. "Maybe seeing some friends will do her some good, she's been catatonic ever since she's been admitted into the hospital. Please, follow me this way!"

We were directed to an area that wasn't as noisy as the lobby of the waiting room, instead sounded with quiet murmurs of nurses and visiting doctors and surgeons. There were also the small chirps of patients' heart rates from the machines hooked to their bodies and the smell of the area had this acrid sweet air lofting from room to room. I cringed; I never really liked hospitals. I glanced at Sierra and she seemed just as uncomfortable as me, clutching her letter close to her chest with one hand and following closely behind with a crutch in the other. It wasn't long until the doctor took a sudden turn into a room and I assumed it was hers.

"Heather, you have visitors today!"

The room was decked out with large bouquets and flower arrangements with helium filled balloons with "Get Well Soon!" stretching across their fronts in some fancy font. There were also several stuffed animals that occupied the tables besides the patient bed along with a few cards – one that seemed to be homemade with messy scribbles for words plastered on the front with glitter, another homemade one that was white and decorated with thin pink calligraphy, and one that seemed store bought with a simple picture of a white Hawaiian flower. A plumeria. Sierra said that it was Heather's favorite flower. How sad was that?

It wasn't as sad as Heather though. When we entered the room and her doctor had spoken so enthusiastically, she just stayed still in her bed. Her hair was out of its usual ponytail, looking scraggly and long as it fell over drooped shoulders with her bangs uncharacteristically falling into her down cast eyes. The only bit of movement I caught from her was a slight twitch from her lips, but even then, it was drawn into thin line on her face. A moment of awkward silence passed through the room before the doctor graciously excused himself from the room. It was obvious he wanted to get the hell out of their by the way his white coat flapped crazily behind his quick strides.

Sierra and I looked at each other nervously for a moment until I let out a shaky breath. I was the first to take a step towards her bed side and I awkwardly fumbled with the flowers in my hands – they were plumerias, too. When Sierra quickly followed my movements I hesitantly laid the arrangement onto her covered legs and Sierra placed her card on top.

"H-hey, Heather… What's up?" Even now I looked like a dumb idiot with the way I stumbled over my words when I was nervous and how I gnawed on my bottom lip anxiously with my teeth. Heather's eyes didn't move upwards to me but tilted her head slightly in our direction, seeming to stare at the area around our feet and abdomens with an unreadable look. Another moment of silence passed before her voice rasped out, sounding crackly and exhausted.

"Dirty sneakers… Tacky green ballerina slippers… Really, you'd think you would at least try to look _decent_ when you bothered visiting me…" Her tone was sharp but there was a small smile on her face – and it wasn't her signature smirk. It was a small but sincere smile.

"Heh, well, I didn't exactly win the one-mil, so I can't afford anything great!" At the reference to the show, Heather's smile faltered slightly. Smooth, Cody, smooth…

"At least we're here, right!" Sierra quickly quipped in to save my disastrous move and pushed her card closer to Heather's body. It was decked out in array of glitter that would make the prettiest rainbow look shabby and had glittering stars framing a picture of Heather's smug smirk at the center. She must have drawn that herself because it had a cute, cartoony look to it.

Heather's eyes shifted slowly to the card and her smile stretched across her face a few more centimeters to our relief. Her bed sheet had been covering her lithe figure up until her arms and the hospital outfit she was forced to wear came up to her elbows, so I couldn't really see much of the appendages. That was until she let her right arm slowly recede from the sheet.

I don't think we both meant to do it intentionally, but Sierra and I sucked in sharp breaths at the sight. The previously flawless skin now had a yellow splotch the size of a small paperback book in the middle of her forearm while another started near her elbow before it escaped into the sanctity of her hospital shirt. They were blistering; the splotches were moist with puss and probably what was probably some medical aid. Heather ignored our sounds of shock to open the card weakly, her blank grey eyes slowly reading over the letter. Her eyes flicked from top to bottom once, twice, and then thrice before she finally closed the card. Her hand weakly reached for the expensive flower bouquet I got for her to pet the petals appreciatively. Her long fingers pulled out one of the plumerias to bring close to her face and she inhaled the strong scent deeply.

"…Thank you for coming," She said before placing the flower back into the bunch neatly and pushed back her unkempt bangs behind her ears. I smiled a little to see the Heather I knew slowly show itself albeit in a small dose. "I really didn't think anyone would come…"

"Well, you were a conniving, plotting, back stabber… but I have to admit, you have the best tactics out of the original cast of Total Drama. Most def a threat and someone everyone loves to hate!" I nudged Sierra in the ribs at that horrible attempt of a compliment. That was a compliment, right? But Heather just smirked a little and casually pushed her hair behind her shoulders.

"At least I wasn't an insane and bald stalker bent out on collecting all of Cody's tidy-whiteys."

"Hey! I'll have you know some of my underwear is green!" Sierra giggled at my embarrassed blush and Heather just smiled, her dull eyes still indirectly staring at our midsections. I dunno if I was just imagining it, but I had a feeling she was too scared to look us dead in the eye. I shook off the feeling along with Sierra's wiggling fingers and looked back at Heather.

"…So, how are you?" The girl's face darkened slightly and her eyes narrowed ever so slightly. She shifted awkwardly under her sheets before pulling left corner of her blanket away from us. Her entire left side was exposed to us and I shrank away in embarrassment and disgust. Sierra flinched but leaned in towards the bed, examining the heavy duty bandaging that started at Heather's toes up until her thigh. I couldn't really tell since her gown was in the way and I couldn't exactly peak up under there either. By the way she shifted, I suspected even her torso and abdomen were bandaged just as heavily and her left arm was wrapped in layers and layers of gauze. The bandages may have managed to hide the burns, but the entirety was almost discolored brown, red, and yellow to show the severity of the wounds.

"They need to change my bandages. They don't know they need to because I always hide under the blanket and say I'm feeling fine," Heather's right hand gingerly rubbed her left arm but quickly pulled it away. She indifferently looked to see moist blood on her finger tips and idly wiped her fingers on a tiny clean portion of her bandages.

"God, this is totally going in my blog – title: Heather's Too Cool to Care about Clean Bandages!" Sierra piped up dramatically but I could tell she was just putting up a show. Her nose was wrinkled at the coppery smell that accumulated under the bed covers and the possibility an infection was festering under the wrappings. Heather must have noticed how uncomfortable we were with her nonchalant attitude because she covered her body a second later.

"Whatever, I'll call a nurse after you guys leave to get it fixed. The smell is starting to bother me anyways."

"Well, that's good I guess… How're you though?"

Heather's eyes closed and she leaned back into the pillow that was placed at the small of her back in the bent bed. Sierra hastily limped to the other side of the bed to gently touch Heather's undamaged hand. Sympathy washed over me and I felt like a total jack ass for even opening my mouth.

"Never mind, I don't need an answer,"

"Yea, it's totally fine, Heather! I'll totally start a mean rumor about that creep Alejandro and you can totally spit in his face at the reunion tonight!" Heather's brow knitted together slightly and she opened her eyes to stare at the ceiling darkly.

"I have surgery tonight, so I won't be going." Sierra's face fell a little but she continued on.

"…Oh… is it major?"

"Well, duh. But a lot of it is reconstruction of my muscles and other crap. Nothing intense will be done to my major organs, I'm sure."

"That's great! Since you can't come, I'll start that rumor anyways and cheer you on live during the show! You'll watch, right?" Her eyes were as big as ever and hopeful. I'd seen that look before and it was pretty hard to say no to. Normally, I'm sure Heather would sneer in blatant annoyance but she just indirectly looked at Sierra and smiled very faintly.

"I guess I'll give you losers the benefit of my attention. Shouldn't you guys get going if you want to make it in time for the reunion, anyways?"

I glanced at the clock and smacked my head in shock. Crap, I hadn't realized that we stayed longer than we thought. I didn't think the wait to see her would be so long and I honestly thought we'd just pop in and out. But Heather just looked so defeated in that bed with all those gifts and flowers surrounding her while she looked lifelessly ahead of her. I looked at Heather to see her head tilted in my direction slightly, as if prodding me to leave with my stalker to recover herself.

"We'll visit again, okay? Get well soon, Heather," Sierra nodded happily and skipped to my side. She latched onto my arm affectionately and turned to look at Heather with sincere eyes.

"We'll definitely be back soon! I hope your surgery goes well! Coderra's got your back, Heather!"

"Sierra, please!"

Heather smiled a little at Sierra's light joke before looking back down at her lap to examine our gifts. We both turned to leave but I a shot a glance back. The way she buried her face into the flowers made my stomach sink with guilt.

* * *

"…ody? Coooody? YO, CODY! Are you in there, bro?"

I jerked up from my thoughts to see Chris staring at me with frustration. Everyone else was looking at me too, so I guessed I hadn't been paying attention much. All I was doing while the cast mates were being questioned was worrying about Heather, surprisingly. I dropped any further thoughts and shook my head blearily.

"S-sorry, Chris. What did you say?" Chris made a growl of frustration and through his hands in the air. Chef rolled his eyes in exasperation and took down the clip of Sierra coddling me in my sleep from the display screen separating himself and Chef from the cast mates. Wait, what the heck was Sierra doing to my - !

"Listen, dude. If you're gonna be here for the reunion, pay attention. I don't have the time for your day dreamin', okay? Time is money! Moving on to the segment since _Cody_ is wasting our time," I rolled my eyes at Chris while Sierra patted my back. She probably knew what I was thinking too because she was chewing on her thumbnail unconsciously and twisting the hem of her shirt in her other hand. We both looked back to Chris after he finally landed on a note card he guessed would bring most drama out of tonight's show. He looked up with a small smirk to lean back in his seat smugly, twirling the card in his fingers.

"So, Cooooody… What were your thoughts on the final three?" I wasn't the only one that felt uncomfortable from the question because a lot of people that made it to at least the top ten squirmed around or looked away abruptly from the cameras and Chris. McLean's smirk stretched even wider and he made his signature chortle of delight. "C'mon, dude! Do you think it was fair that Alejandro knocked out your chances of being in the final two _and_ totally manipulated Heather till the very end? You know what – don't answer! Roll the clip!"

My mouth sagged in horror as the screen buzzed with white noise before cutting to the scene of Alejandro running to the top of the volcano victoriously with his pineapple sacrifice.

"_Looking for __**this**__?" Chris cried dramatically in the clip, to which Alejandro responded with an eager look._

"_Thanks for everything!" He hissed excitedly to the sacrifice replica of Heather and tongued the head happily. He inched towards the volcano's mouth to throw over the replica-Heather when the real thing herself pulled herself up, wheezing and baring her teeth angrily._

"_NO! I can't catch my breath!" Her legs wobbled, threatening to give way as Alejandro turned smugly away from the volcano, taunting her with how close he was to winning it all._

"_You are gorgeous when you've lost!" Heather's lips quivered as she realized everything was coming to an end. Her eyes watered and her head felt fuzzy from the shock of utter defeat and the smoldering heat escaping the fiery pit of the volcano._

"_I've worked so hard, and now you're just gonna take the mil and vanish from my life forever… Just throw your stupid doll in the stupid volcano already!" Her tears fell in fat drops to the burning rock only to evaporate. Alejandro looked pleased and stepped closer to the wreckage that was Heather. He pressed on his taunting with a small hint of sincere curiosity while he stepped closer to the girl._

"_So, what are you more upset about losing? The million… or me?"_

"_Are you cracked?" Heather's face flushed visibly from the remark and she threw her arms up in embarrassment. Alejandro's smirk grew even wider. "I would never fall for a jerk like you!"_

"_Then why are you blushing?"_

"_Hello! We're, like, beside the hottest thing in the planet!" Alejandro's brilliant eyes narrowed viciously but he resumed his smug gait by flipping his hair to the side nonchalantly._

"_Admit it! You're in love with me!"_

"_What! I don't love you! I love y –" The stumble of words made a collective gasp ring around the eliminated cast mates at the finally admitted attraction Heather held for the clear winner of the game. She quickly tried to redeem herself but Alejandro quickly cut her off with a revelation of his own._

"_I know what you meant… And I must confess: at first, yes, my intentions were purely strategic. That is no longer the case. Because you – you have stolen my heart! Our connection goes deeper than any game! Together, we could take over the world!" _

_Heather blushed at the intensity in her competitors eyes – finally after all the denial and mixed signals, Alejandro was admitting his mutual attraction to her. Things were looking up for Heather but she quickly mulled the thoughts in her head: Alejandro? Or one million dollars? She genuinely liked the boy, maybe even more since she had never experienced such a feeling in her life but the one million seemed _so_ much more appealing. Heather smirked inwardly at her new plan – she would trick the stupid fool to get the money herself. Besides, Alejandro would appreciate such tactics and she would offer him a share before apologizing for her selfish actions. It was perfect._

"_Wow… I suppose I might actually feel a little something…"_

"_Mi amor!" The next thing Heather knew what was happening; Alejandro's tantalizing tongue was pushing itself into her mouth passionately, catching everyone else off guard as well. There was a group hiss of disgust but Heather enjoyed the kiss for a moment before she brought her knee up to Alejandro's crotch._

_Or that's what she had intended._

"_Aha, senorita, did you really think I was _that_ foolish?" Alejandro sneered with a squeeze of emphasis around Heather's leg. The girl was startled – her leg had moved up so fast that no one should have expected it, but Alejandro caught the knee so quick as if he anticipated it. "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Now come, mi amor, as I shatter all your hopes and dreams in front of you."_

_Alejandro pushed Heather forward towards the volcano's mouth fiercely and she stumbled to her knees to the rocky ground. "I don't take well to betrayal, Heather. Fear not, though! I am a forgiving lover… I might just give you one-percent of my winnings!" Heather's mouth flapped in the air in shock at Alejandro's harsh laugh. Was this really happening? She brought herself shakily to her feet to vainly beat her fists against Alejandro's chest in an attempt to stop him from pushing the wooden sacrifice into the volcano.  
_

"_You… you can't do this to me!"_

"_Oh, but I can! Míreme!" Alejandro sadistically kicked the Heather sacrifice into the volcano before the girl's eyes. For a moment, nothing happened __–__ not even a back lash of lava from the throw. Chris took this moment to announce Alejandro as the sole winner of this season with less than happy applause from everyone that had fallen victim to his manipulative ways. Courtney cheered enthusiastically from her spot in the crowd and he smiled cheekily at her. His gaze traveled back to Heather, who was still staring at the center of the volcano's mouth, too shocked beyond words to find defeat when she was so close to victory. He smiled sympathetically and pulled her close to his own body._

"_It's okay, mi amor. We will share the money amongst ourse –" His words were cut off when the ground beneath them quivered angry with a guttural sound erupting from the center of the volcano. Suddenly, a geyser of searing lava was spat out towards the two. Alejandro jumped back instinctively but Heather was still aghast, reacting a second too late as the lava fell on her. Everyone screamed in fear and made a mad run down the side of the volcano to find safety. Heather was shrieking in absolute pain with her left side drenched in the molten lava. Her right hand tried to swat her clothes to make the pain go away but only caused lava to spill on her unharmed arm. Alejandro cried out in concern and ran towards her, trying his best to alleviate her pain. But now he was screaming and more lava was beginning to fly out of the volcano's opening with fiery boulders flying towards the camera man and –_

"Sheesh, that was intense. Should have totally warned them about the pineapple-in-the-volcano thing… Anyways, let's bring out Alejandro!" Chris began to clap his hands as a signal for the audience to follow along. There were cheers and shrieks of awe from the audience when Alejandro stepped out in all his glory but no one in the cast clapped for him except Courtney. When was that girl gonna get a clue? Alejandro shot those disgustingly sweet smiles towards the cameras and waved his left hand amiably – wait, why was his left hand all bandaged up?

"Welcome back, Mr. Total Drama World Tour Winner!" Chris greeted when Alejandro took a seat next to Courtney. She leaned in and snuggled against his arm but completely ignored her. I fisted the hem of my vest angrily at his detached presence to the glares and sneers from his fellows. Again, his bound and apparently damaged arm came up to his face to brush away his bangs in a glamorous manner.

"It's good to be back, Chris…"

* * *

AN: So I'll let the chapter end like this and have you all wondering what direction this story will head in. Hopefully I can update my other story soon before I pick this up again. I hope the ending of this chapter is compelling enough for you guys to continue reading when it has more chapters! Please review if you have any comments or ask some questions – I'll try to answer them without giving too much away. Thanks again for reading! Until next time!


	2. Duncan and Gwen

AN: I have a thing where I always update a second chapter of a new story the same day I post it. So what luck for all you readers interested in where this is going! Hopefully there will be weekly updates, but there's no absolute guarantee. You'll just have to live in suspense I guess…

Anyways, thanks for all the reviews! I don't update based on how many reviews I get but they are terribly encouraging to me. Please continue leaving your thoughts!

* * *

"What does it feel like to be a hundred million dollars richer than you already are?" Chris' conniving smirk was stretching across his face from the reaction he was earning from the rest of the cast. Feh, what a freaking snake. Not that Alejandro's any better; he was smiling like everything was perfect for him with Courtney driving her fancy manicured nails into his arm. Those two are quite the pair.

"It feels… satisfying, to say the least," Alejandro drawled in that easy going arrogance he wore so well. He finally acknowledged Courtney's presence when she pressed her head into the crook of his neck, and he shot an obviously forced smile before he wrapped his right arm around her body. "There have been… distractions, simply put. But I have the million and a great girl by my side." Courtney giggled to herself at how kindly Alejandro addressed her and everyone murmured amongst themselves curiously.

"What happened to Heather?" Cody hissed from the top row of seats. Everyone turned around to look up at him, struggling to get out of Sierra's grasps and looking like he was going to lunge at Alejandro with all his might. I had to give it to Cody, he really manned up towards the end of this season but Alejandro could probably kick his ass in a heart beat. Gwen unsettled in her seat next to me as if she was going to try and stop Cody too but I pushed her shoulder down. We looked at each other and I gave her a small shake of my head. It was better not to get involved when it came to Alejandro.

"Whoa, whoa, Cody! _Now_ you decide you want to pay attention? Settle down, tiger!" Chris laughed, waving at some interns to go and handle the situation. Two men ran out and pulled Cody back into his seat, one restraining him with some difficulty while another was belting him down to his seat. Cody was growling for them to leave him alone but Sierra was murmuring something under her breath that stopped some of his angry struggling. After a few moments Cody was quiet. But if looks could kill, I'm sure Alejandro wouldn't be smiling so cheerily at Cody and would be carried out by some of Chris' interns and the paramedics.

"Now that Cody's been restrained… Tell us about Heather, Alejandro! The camera footage of you two at the top of the volcano was destroyed towards the end, but we did manage to catch up to you when you made it the beach shore and into the water. We saw where you got that nasty burn injury," On cue, everyone scooted away from the boy in question to stare at his left hand. The white bandages only went from his finger tips to his wrist and were thick. We all let our eyes run all over his hand for some imperfection but there was nothing besides those perfectly wound bandages on that slick bastard.

"Pretty nastyyyyy, but not as bad as Heather's burns. Still talk to her, lover boy?"

Alejandro's face hardened at the question and his arm fell from Courtney's shoulders. She frowned at Chris but looked up back at Alejandro with sick adoration. For being a CIT this girl was definitely an idiot.

"Heather and I have not spoken since the accident. I admit, I do feel remorse for how things have ended but I am sure she is much happier now that the show is out of her life. As for me–"

"You're too busy being a freaking asshole!" Cody snarled angrily. My jaw dropped. When did Cody grow such balls?

"I would watch what you say, _hombre_. I am a gentleman, but I will not take such false accusations so lightly." Cody's eyes narrowed in the most intense fury I've never seen and fought against his restraints harder. Despite trying her best to keep him calm, Sierra was glowering at Alejandro just as venomously as the scrawny guy.

"Oh whatever! Everyone knows you're a scheming backstabber that was just in it for the money and you picked off everyone you could. You're nothing but a snake!"

"Or an eel dipped in oil," Noah stated. Owen nodded eagerly and soon everyone was glaring at Alejandro. Me? I was smirking – finally this guy was gonna get what was coming to him. Alejandro shot a look of scalding rage at the snide princess in his seat but dropped the look hastily to put on a fake smile towards Cody.

"I did what I had to win, my friend. It's called strategy. Maybe if you knew how to use tactics you'd have the one million, but alas, you don't. So how about we calm down and remember who the clear winner was, _sí_?"

"Whatever you say, _Al_," I said from my place at the front row of seats. My head was twisted towards the pretty boy to see his nostrils had flared in anger and his eyes were narrowed to little slits. I laughed and leaned back on the back of my row. Chris smirked just as evilly and pressed onto a different card. Alejandro, however, was breathing hard somewhere behind me with Courtney cooing reassuring words to him.

* * *

"Geez, I've never seen Cody that angry before…" Gwen mumbled as we exited the studio. Not far ahead of us, Cody and Sierra were talking in rushed voices but I couldn't make out what they were talking about. Dweeb still looked pretty pissed and Sierra was still looking concerned, but the two eventually stopped talking and walked off in different directions. I shrugged at Gwen's thought.

"Meh, whatever. He still pisses me off,"

"Don't tell me you're still mad about Australia. You got even!"

"Psh, does it look like I care? It was a dick move to throw me off during the first challenge like that." Gwen rolled her eyes. Instead of being snooty like Courtney in these situations, she gently entwined her hand in mine and squeezed thoughtfully. I smirked and squeezed back, leading the both of us to my dad's beat up truck. We both buckled in and I revved up the engine as a thought occurred to me.

During the first break, I had been pocketing some of the equipment backstage to pawn when I noticed Sierra talking quietly to Cody. At first, I guessed she was just trying to figure out some way to get into his pants by playing all mopey and sad he wouldn't be more than just his best friend. But I realized that they talking about Heather and looking like they _cared_. Heather, of all people! I perked my ears to hear what they were talking about and heard from Sierra's rushed babbling that Heather was going into surgery sometime during the show or something. Don't get me wrong, I don't like the girl as much as any normal person but I felt bad about her. She had teamed up with Alejandro to watch my ass take a jump off Chris' piece of crud plane and she tried to use me to distract him before, but he was a ruthless bastard. A little too much for my liking anyways. Besides, the dude totally stomped on her pride at Hawaii and was the reason why she was probably getting diced up under those surgeons' blades.

I pulled up next to Gwen's house a half an hour later of thinking about Heather and trying to talk to Gwen casually at the same time (note to self: never again when I'm driving). She unbuckled her seatbelt and leaned in to kiss me goodbye when I grabbed her by the arm. She looked confused as I sighed heavily in my car seat.

"I'm thinking of visiting Heather at the hospital tomorrow. You in?"

Gwen's jaw promptly dropped and her eyes bore incredulous holes into me.

"You're kidding, right? Because April Fool's was a month ago, Duncan."

"No, no, I'm serious. Chick deserves _some_ kind of company, right?" Gwen's eyes reverted back to their normal size and she seemed to mull the idea in her head for a short time. But I could tell from her face that she didn't want to be apart of this. I didn't either, but those gut feelings make you do some ridiculous things.

"Need I remind you we weren't her closest allies on the show? I'm pretty sure she despises the both of us… And what good would come from us showing our faces to her?"

"Come on, Pastey. Have some compassion. Or does being goth suck all of the good will towards man out of you? Wouldn't you want someone to visit you if you were badly hurt?"

I grinned at Gwen's look of defeat. She may have shown a cold exterior to strangers but I knew she was a big old softy when it came down to it. Sexy.

"Whatever, fine. But if she tries to haul our butts out of there, it's totally your fault."

…_plumerias often symbolize perfection in Hawaii…_

The knife in my pocket rolled around in my hand while Gwen flipped through some chick magazine with a bored expression. My thumbnail pressed into the leather wrapping around the handle as I watched patients come and go in wheelchairs with cheerful nurses and with a couple of doctors hastily passing through the lobby to the hallway. A part of me wanted to be a surgeon but I'm sure my dad would only look at this as an excuse to cut up people legally. A part of him was right.

"Why are you smiling? You can't be _that_ excited to visit Heather…" Gwen teased from her magazine and nudged my rib. Right when I was about to open my mouth to say something witty, a guy in a lab coat approached us with a slightly relieved look on his face. Both of us stood up since he must have been there to take us to Heather.

"You're seeing Heather Yamamoto, right?" We looked at each other in confusion since we never knew what Heather's last name was. The doctor didn't wait for an answer though and instead pushed us forward with his clipboard. "I must say, having visitors does lighten her spirits. She wasn't as sharp with the nurses before her surgery last night. I'd like to think her family visiting lightens her spirits, but I guess seeing her friends do her a whole lot of good,"

Gwen looked like she wanted to correct the doctor as he went on about Heather's current status but she held her tongue as we passed through several halls to make it off into some specialized ward. My guess was that it was the Burn Victims unit. Anyways, the doctor finally stopped beside a room with the label 1248A and motioned us to step inside. Knowing that I probably had a better relationship with Heather than Gwen, I stepped in to look at the room. The place was decked out with cutesy stuffed animals, balloons, flowers, and other junk that practically made the walls look like the gifts were permanently plastered to them. On the floor of the room were a mess of papers and playing cards, along with a scrawny kid looking up at the room's television with extreme boredom. I looked at the bed next to see Heather staring at the TV as well. She wasn't alone on the bed – she was squished next to a girl that looked a lot like her, pulling her hair gently into a braid and humming to herself. I made a small cough since none of them seemed to notice I walked in. The boy was the first to turn around and made a small gasp.

"Oh my god, it's _Duncan_! Heather, look! It's _Duncan_!" The kid scrambled up from his spot on the floor to rush by my side and looked up at me with wide eyes. When I got a closer look, I noticed he looked a lot like Heather too; he had a pointed chin, a sharp nose and, like Heather, had slanted eyes that were up to no good. "I'm you're biggest fan Duncan! I was so stoked when you won Total Drama Action and was cheering you on the whole way! My sister was too lame to make it all that far second season…" The kid looked back at Heather resentfully and I glanced at her as well. She looked infuriated, horrified, and startled all at once.

"Shut up, Damien! Get the heck out of here, you creeper!" She bared her teeth at the kid and the other girl looked at us questioningly. She had Heather's hair but it was much longer and it was in a loose ponytail that rested over her left shoulder. She also had the same eyes Heather and Damien had, but they were half-lidded without much emotion and hidden behind a set of grey glasses.

"You're just pissed because Duncan and his girlfriend are here while you look like crap!"

"What are you, like, four? Get out of here before I tell mom and dad that you were talking like that!" Damien's shoulders shook angrily and muttered he was ten before he pushed me aside roughly to run down the hallway. "You too, Annette! I'm not your freaking doll, so stop braiding my hair!" Heather slapped the girl's hands away from her head and pushed her off of the bed. She stumbled, but quickly regained her composure without much of a fuss like Damien. Gwen smiled nervously when those grey eyes looked at us with a perplexed look but she walked past us without further acknowledgement. We both looked at Heather to see her fisting the bed's blanket in her right hand while shaking slightly.

"What the hell are you doing here? Come to laugh at me?" She hissed angrily. I wanted to shout at her and turn on my heel at how ungrateful she acted. But Gwen quickly intervened and pulled out a small card from her bag to show to Heather.

"We came to see how you were doing… We heard you went under the knife last night. You alright?" Heather made a small scoff and flipped her fresh braid with the toss of her head. She grabbed at the card Gwen presented her and skimmed the contents without much thought. Her frown lifted slightly when she reached the end of the card. And she better have liked that piece of crap because it was fifteen dollars out of my pocket and it took me more than an hour to think of something nice to put without sounding like I was bullshitting the whole thing. She sighed and folded the card into her lap, looking down at our feet in embarrassment.

"Thanks… I guess…" she mumbled with difficulty and I rolled my eyes. "But you didn't have to. I honestly don't think you guys are the brightest bulbs in the Total Drama bunch."

"And I still think you're the biggest bitch, but hey, you win some and you lose some…" Gwen held in her snicker to be nice but it didn't seem to bother Heather. Her lip curled downward in light annoyance as she let her free hand undo the braid that Annette girl had made for her. I noticed the healing burns as soon as her arm moved up to reach for her hair – having this weird yellowish hue and looking slightly wet in the shine of the room fluorescents. Gwen made a small hiss and unconsciously moved closer to my side at how carelessly Heather let the wound brush up _hard_ against the rough bed sheets, the safety rail around the bed, and her hair. It honestly seemed like the pain didn't seem to affect her or she was putting on some type of front for us.

"Those are some gnarly burns. You sure you're okay?" I asked but Heather shot a threatening look towards my stomach.

"I didn't answer Gwen's last question for a reason, you imbecile. I'm fine if you haven't noticed!"

"Well excuse me for showing some concern, you stuck up snob! By the way Sierra and Cody talked about you at the show, you sounded like a pathetic loser vying for some attention but you're still too much of a bitch to even look at us in the eyes!" Gwen looked at me warningly but I continued to growl at Heather. This girl was pushing it to the extreme with how she was talking to me; after all the crap she put me through the show last season and the fact I forced myself and Gwen were good reasons enough for Heather to be kissing our feet. She was glaring at our feet hard for a few moments and opened her mouth to probably say something mean back. But she didn't – she just made a shaky sound while her lip quivered a little. Shit – I was mad and only wanted to make her feel bad, but I didn't want her to _cry_…

"Just get the hell out of here. You're doing me more harm than good!" Gwen shot me both an annoyed and triumphant look when Heather ordered us out. I shook my head in annoyance at the two girls and stomped my way out of the room with Gwen quickly following behind. But as soon as we made it to the end of the ward, I saw Annette leaning on the wall as she spoke calmly to Heather's doctor. I was trying to avoid being noticed but Annette's eyes zeroed in on the two of too fast for any hiding could be done. She dismissed the doctor shortly and walked towards us with an amused look on her face.

"You lasted longer than I thought you would. About 1.7 seconds longer,"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Gwen questioned defensively as Annette pulled out a Blueberry phone to punch in a few numbers. Annette shrugged casually and looked back up at us with that taunting amusement.

"Nothing, really. Just that I expected a lot more from my sister. But then again, she isn't in the best of places,"

"Look, we didn't say anything to her!" I cut in hurriedly, just in case Annette was about to leave to check up in on Heather to see her bawling her eyes out. She raised an eyebrow with a small smile and laughed lightly.

"I never said you did anything. Even if you did, I wouldn't care."

"Wait – you wouldn't care? Why the hell not?" Gwen was looking like she was going to smack this girl upside the head by how indifferent she was about Heather's situation and I just narrowed my eyes. Maybe this was why Heather was so messed up.

"Let's just say I've had enough of my little sister's antics to get my parents' attention. She always had something to prove when it came to our family. I was the prodigy that went to University with a full ride scholarship and went back to Tokyo to intern for my CEO of a grandfather. Damien has been bringing home awards since preschool for just about everything humanely possible. And what has Heather done? She was the ugly little duckling of our household – fat, the exact opposite of unique, a needle in your side, and talent less in comparison to me and Damien. I was glad to get her out of my hair when I moved away just before she finished junior high and lucky enough to hear about her fiasco of a presence in this Total Drama nonsense. And now that she's crippled momentarily, she has all the time to think about how unfortunate she is and what a disgrace she has brought upon herself. Maybe she'll be able to fix her mistakes in time to redeem herself in our family's eyes. In the mean time, I'll just smile and comfort her since we're family."

Gwen and I were gaping at Annette, who was fixing her shirt easily. Like she hadn't said the most messed up thing I've ever heard. She smiled sweetly at us and walked around our stiff bodies towards Heather's room. My hand shot out to pull her back though, and I yanked her towards me gruffly. Her eyebrows were raised but she didn't seem startled at all, just sickly amused.

"How can you say that about your sister?" Annette's smile just stretched across her face and she tilted her head, literally looking like she was saying '_Seriously?_' in her mind. Her hand gently unwound my thick fingers from her arm and shot us a small look of resent.

"Haven't you caught on by now? You've been on the show with Heather for three seasons now and you still don't realize what's important to us. The Yamamotos are all about perfection and victory, and if Heather is the family failure, she needs to realize that."

A sudden blur pushed Annette away from me and I looked down startled to see Damien looking up at us with awe. He grinned up at my blank face and pushed a pen with a piece of paper towards me eagerly.

"Hey, before you go, can I get an autograph? You're totally awesome!"

"Stop bothering him, Damien. He was just leaving with his friend." Annette smiled again and tugged Damien's arm towards her. He pouted but actually complied to Annette's gentle command. Before he turned to follow his eldest sister back to Heather's room, he threw me the thumbs up with a knowing smile. It was almost as if he knew the words that had been exchanged between the three of us and knew full well he had more power than Heather when it came to the family hierarchy. Gwen and I just stared at them until they turned the first corner then turned to stare at each other with extreme bewilderment.

"I always thought Heather had complete control over her parents…" Gwen murmured. I let a hand run through my spiked hair in confusion.

"Maybe. But it's obvious her siblings have more power than her. It all makes sense now…"

"Yea… I kind of feel bad for her… Should we come back again?"

I shook my head at the idea, knowing full well that Heather still despised our every being. And something told me in the pit of my stomach that if Heather knew we were aware of the social classes within her family, she would only make every second with her a living hell. I pulled Gwen with me to leave the hospital and tossed a sympathetic look back at the burn unit. Gwen looked back as well with a look that expressed concern and reluctance.

"Heather's strong. I'm sure she'll be fine." Gwen nodded finally and we made our way back to the hospital parking lot.

Apart of me wasn't sure at all, but I had to keep telling myself that girl would be fine. This was Heather we were talking about; the meanest girl around, most conniving, and among the evilest of the bunch. But I guess you could say that was thanks to her twisted siblings. During the entire walk, the two of us were quiet and silently hoping that someone else from the Total Drama shows would pop in to see Heather.

Now I know why the doctor didn't think her family visiting made her feel any better at all…

* * *

AN: And thus concludes chapter two. Now the updates will be irregular, so sit tight!

Anyways, it was really difficult for me to write from Duncan's perspective. I only wanted to write these first two chapters from the perspectives of characters to give a feel for the story and a feel for the two main people of the fic, so it's likely I'll start writing in third person. I do, however, plan to write from Heather and Alejandro's POV at certain points in the story, so if you liked this, have no fear! And if you didn't, at least the next few chapters won't follow the same trend!

Please leave a review if you have any thoughts on the story! They'll encourage me to update sometime soon and are always uplifting. Until next time!


	3. Carlos and José

AN: Hello! Wow, I never thought this would be a big hit among the Total Drama community. Thank you to everyone who has messaged, reviewed, favorited, and put this story on their alert list! It really makes me feel great about myself and makes me want to try and update faster to sate your curiosity! More than likely this story will be at least ten chapters long so I hope that'll keep everyone interested in keeping up with the story.

Again, thank you so much for the positive feedback!

* * *

"_Mierda_!" Alejandro howled, squirming in his seat and using his right hand to clench hard onto the arm rest of his chair. His doctor ignored the continuous flow of Spanish curses he spat and continued to delicately cut the blistering skin around his significant burn. The doctor made a cluck of his tongue at the condition of the poor hand – a burn so terrible that it had melted the flesh straight to Alejandro's ring finger knuckle with irritated second degree burns surrounding the rest of the area on his hand. It was clear that Alejandro would need some grafting to be done in order for the burn to heal properly, but the boy wasn't the easiest of patients to work with. He always complained about the horrid food the patients were served and would flirt nonstop with all the female nurses, causing several setbacks with surgeries and check-ups throughout the hospital. Not only that, but the boy continuously threatened the doctor that he would ruin his life if he couldn't repair his perfect hand. Oh yes, Alejandro Burromuerto was far from the doctor's ideal patient.

"_Ay, mijo_! Does it hurt that much?" Alejandro's mother stepped towards him in concern and brushed his face reassuringly. Alejandro simply hissed and nodded as the doctor reapplied a medical fluid to soothe some of the pain before he began to bind a new set of bandages around his hand. Behind the two were Alejandro's male portion of the family, his diplomat father and elder brothers. His father was watching with an equal amount of concern his mother exuded but his brothers were quite the opposite.

Carlos, the eldest, was sitting in a chair by the corner, passing a soccer ball between his feet with jaded interest. When Carlos had heard of his brother's incident on the reality show, he had flown over immediately from his overseas soccer team to be with his family. He didn't really talk to his youngest brother because of the fifteen year age gap between them and his consistent time away from the family, but then again, Carlos was a man of little words and emotions. Beside him was the middle child José, who was putting all his focus into the phone he held before him. José was the exact opposite of Carlos and probably the most similar to Alejandro – the closest definition to human perfection in all aspects. He always shadowed Alejandro in every way, shape, and form, which caused the rift in their already rocky relationship.

"_Perdone_, doctor, but when will Alejandro get his surgery? It's obvious the traditional route isn't doing much help," Alejandro's father had stepped in as the doctor finished binding the burned hand, shooting a sympathetic look to his son before he pressed the doctor with more questions. The professional made a small sigh and glanced over his clipboard.

"Alejandro will actually need to get his surgery done as soon as possible. His burns are falling under risk of severe infection. Although the antibiotics and disinfectants have been…" As the doctor continued his speech on Alejandro's medical attention, Alejandro shrank away from his parents' side to move over to his brother. He wasn't one to deny their attention so easily, but this was not the way he would like his parents to notice him. Luckily, the Burromuertos did not seem to realize their son was slowly inching away as they were too engrossed with all the procedures the doctor listed for Alejandro to undergo.

"What's wrong, Al? Your boo-boo still bothering you?" José teased as Alejandro walked towards the two detached siblings. Carlos said nothing but cracked a small smile. Compared to José, Carlos was only ten years older than the young adult and had thus spent more of his childhood with him than Alejandro. Unfortunately for the youngest Burromuerto, that meant Carlos had a stronger relationship with José than himself.

Alejandro sneered at his elder brother. He decided against making an insult towards his brother in case his parents would overhear so he simply placed himself in the chair beside his eldest sibling. José smirked at his brother's willingness to submit and turned his attention back to his phone. Alejandro shot another angry glare at his smug brother before he relaxed in his chair. He looked down at his left hand and winced at the intense throbbing that pulsated throughout that entire portion of his body. Luckily the most damaging bit of his burns were only the size of a silver-dollar but they did expose the skeletal foundation. Everything else was a sweltering pink and red that had splotches of yellow near the harshest burn. He was lucky that no other part of his body had been affected from the volcano eruption.

Alejandro unconsciously flinched at the memories from Hawaii and how disastrous things had actually turned out. He hadn't intended for anyone to get hurt at all – he just wanted to make it clear to Heather he was no fool and he still had his pride intact. He wanted to punish her for her betrayal in Alberta by winning the show's prize money and cutting her out of his life, but his growing love had gotten the better of him. But it was clear his pride had taken over at the top of that volcano, otherwise no one would have been hurt and he would be sharing his prize money with Heather like he had originally intended.

But there was no way Heather would speak to him even if he apologized now. He had stomped a little too hard on her huge ego on national television and he was partially, if not wholly, to blame for her horrible state. It didn't help that he continuously imagined Heather wasting away with depression in her hospital quarters or that she was off probably blaming him for everything. The nightmares of her screams that day accompanied with the horrible knots of guilt just made everything worse by ten-fold.

"Oi, Al! Get up, we're leaving!" José slapped Alejandro's left shoulder cheekily, snapping the boy out of his distraught thoughts. Alejandro jumped at the sudden slap and realized it was only he and his brother in the room now. "You sure none of that lava got you in the head? You're acting a little slower than usual!"

"Could you be any more insensitive, José?" Alejandro growled angrily as he smacked his brother's hand away from his shoulder. José smirked, as if challenging Alejandro's words but Alejandro said nothing more. They both walked out of the room and into the bustling hallways of the hospital filled with needy patients. Alejandro hastened his pace to distance himself from his brother, but José was always up for a challenge and quickened his own footsteps to match Alejandro's. The younger Latino growled in frustration and pushed ahead farther with José not far behind. The two were practically running down the hall when Alejandro made a sudden turn at a four-way intersection where he collided face on with a young nurse. Alejandro made a bark of pain as he landed clumsily on his bad hand while the nurse made a sharp squeak.

"Oh my! Excuse us, _señorita_! My younger brother doesn't pay attention much when he's walking," José said as he helped the young woman to her feet. Alejandro just collected himself off the ground with an ugly grimace of frustration and pain on his face.

"O-oh, it's quite alright! Are you two twins?" At the suggestion, Alejandro stiffened.

If there was something that he nearly despised more than being called Al it was being mistaken as José's twin. The Burromuerto brothers all looked exactly the same thanks to their father's devilish good looks with only small to obvious differences. Carlos shared the deep brown hair color his brothers had and the signature Burromuerto goatee, but his hair was the shortest out of all the brothers because of his soccer career. It stuck up at odd but stylish spikes that framed his hard face, which had olive green eyes. Carlos, on the other hand, kept his hair long but not like Alejandro. It ended near the nape of his neck and looked windswept most of the time with short and messy bangs covering his forehead. His eyes were a jade green in contrast to Alejandro and Carlos. The other differences in telling the brothers apart besides their hair was their heights and ear piercings; Carlos was six-foot-five with three piercings on each ear, José was six-foot-two with two ear piercings, and Alejandro was simply six-foot with one earring in each ear.

"Oh, why yes, _señorita_! But you can see I am the better looking twin and more chivalrous…" José answered sweetly, shooting a haughty look at Alejandro whilst the nurse giggled girlishly. He knew all to well how much Alejandro hated being considered the inferior twin whenever he played along with the identical twin situations they ran into.

"Excuse me, but we must be moving along, José." Alejandro intervened curtly, making the nurse's smile falter slightly. His brother rolled his eyes at how easily annoyed Alejandro had become but all the same nodded.

"Parting brings me such sweet sorrow, _señorita_. Perhaps we will run into each on better circumstances in the future…" And with a small wink, José walked around the dazzled nurse to follow Alejandro down the rest of the hallway. When he finally caught up to his brother, he nudged Alejandro's side with subtle implication. "Don't you just love the idea of being my younger twin, Al?"

"Oh, I love it _tons_."

* * *

Alejandro flailed on his luxury bed in annoyance and pain. His hand had been aching ever since the doctor had finished cutting away more dead tissue from the burn and reminiscing about Hawaii had caused his stomach to make uncomfortable flips every so often. And thinking about Hawaii made Alejandro remember the horrible turnabout at the show's reunion special made the flipping sensation worse. He honestly didn't want to come to the reunion at all – he had been too shocked with how horribly wrong the events of Hawaii took place, distracted by his significant burns, and ashamed that he had actually lost control of himself on national television. It didn't help that José would avidly tune into each episode when it aired and recorded it on every DVR set the Burromuertos owned.

Against his better wishes, Alejandro found he was pushing himself up against his bed frame gingerly into a sitting position, staring at the flat screen TV that faced him. His good hand grabbed the remote to the DVR numbly and before he knew it, the theme song for the Total Drama series was playing through the stereo sound system. The corner of Alejandro's lips twitched in distaste as he watched the reunion special episode. He disliked a majority of the competitors on the show for their surprising naivete to his tactics and how simple-minded they were. Heather was really the only competition on the show, exemplifying fierce determination and vicious but strategic moves on her behalf.

"Damn it, pull it together, Alejandro!" the boy hissed to himself and slapped his face angrily. His mind wandered too easily when it came to that girl, only causing happy butterflies to flutter in his stomach before getting caught in the spider webs of Alejandro's guilt. He shook his head to clear his mind and fast-forwarded through the mindless talking of his former cast mates. Suddenly Alejandro was on the screen, moving erratically to his seat on the television and answering Chris' question. Alejandro in real life frowned as Cody blew up on him in fast motion on the TV, how Alejandro had firmly ordered him to calm down, and how Duncan had the audacity to call him by that hated nickname. Alejandro pressed the play button and leaned back further on his mahogany bed frame.

"_Let's jump back a bit, Alejandro. You just said you had a great girl by your side… Is that girl per chance Courtney?" Chris wiggled his brows suggestively towards Courtney with the question. Alejandro had resisted the urge to cringe at the thought of such allegations. Courtney, on the other hand, tightened her grip around Alejandro's arm with a wide smile on her face. She looked up eagerly at Alejandro, her eyes demanding a damn good answer at that moment._

"_I thought we were moving onto a different topic, Chris…" Alejandro rebutted quietly. Courtney's grip tightened warningly on his arm in response._

"_What's wrong, Alejandro? Too much of a chicken wuss to be truthful?" Duncan scoffed below him, looking at the Hispanic from his peripheral vision. Alejandro glowered at the delinquent below him for a short second before he looked back at Chris with hopeful eyes. But he should have known better because the host just widened his evil smirk and waggled his brows again, pressing the boy for an answer._

"_Well, Alejandro?" Courtney hissed in a tone that was partially sweet but had a threatening melody to it. Alejandro looked at the anal-pretentious girl with a forced smile before he turned back towards Chris and his cameras._

"_Of course that girl is Courtney, Chris. How foolish would I be to let such a catch escape me?" Alejandro's mouth twitched slightly at his words. Of course he was lying, but he was such a great liar. But then again, every now knew his flattery meant nothing and that he was a lying 'eel dipped in oil' as Noah kindly worded it. The only one who seemed to buy the gracious lie was Courtney and she nuzzled further into Alejandro's body. Alejandro really had to question the sanity of this girl – she almost shadowed Izzy in this department! – and her common sense. She _must_ have seen all the episodes of Total Drama World Tour and noticed Alejandro's dirty tricks before the reunion because of how attentive she was._

"_Oh really, now? Do you plan on splitting the prize money with her?" Chris threw a note card over his shoulder as he moved onto the next set of prepared questions. Again, Alejandro had a distasteful response to the inquiry but forced a small smile for appearances._

"_Well, I'm not sure about that much, but I–"_

"_Huh? I thought you said you'd pay me back some how!" Courtney hissed accusingly up at the boy. Alejandro was ready to throw this girl off of him at this point but his eyes glittered with false flirtation._

"_Isn't being with me enough of a reward?"_

"_Well, I-I, y-you see –"_

"I always thought that girl was annoying."

Alejandro jumped at the sudden voice by his door to see Carlos peeking his head in, emotionless and steely looking. Alejandro made a move to turn off the TV but Carlos stopped him by clucking his tongue disapprovingly. The eldest sibling of Alejandro's plopped himself next to the injured boy with a small hint of interest in his dark green eyes, taking in Courtney's nervous fidgeting in with a look of slight disgust.

"You watch this show, Carlos?" The man shrugged at the question.

"Have to watch something while the team's touring around the world. Oh, I liked him," Carlos pointed to the boy in the back – Tyler, as Alejandro recalled – and let his teeth gleam in a toothy smile. "He was a riot. Total klutz."

"Yea, I suppose so…" Again, Carlos shrugged and his smile fell almost immediately. Alejandro shifted uncomfortably.

He didn't have the best of relationships with Carlos. By the time he was five, Carlos had already been recruited by a well known soccer team and traveled all around the world with them. The only memories Alejandro had with this brother were the occasional visits on one of their parent's birthdays or to take a break from touring around the world. These occurrences amounted to three times during Alejandro's entire lifetime. To him, Carlos was that distant relative that intimated you with his cold stare and made you feel uncomfortable because there was really nothing to talk about. José was always excited to see Carlos though, and Alejandro could understand – they were together longer as children.

"Why are you watching this again? Bored?" Carlos asked abruptly just as Blaineley entered the set, causing Chris to throw a tantrum and demand for her removal. Alejandro watched her throw a haughty look to the audience and the cameras before she strutted to a spot beside Chris, revealing she had her own set of question cards for the cast mates. He made no attempt to answer his brother's question, which was more than enough for the older man to understand exactly what was going through his mind.

"Ahhh, guilty, I see." Alejandro's face hardened at the observation and simply exited out of the show's recording. Carlos made a small hum of disapproval but did nothing else in protest. He pushed himself off of Alejandro's bed instead and made his way to the door until he turned slightly to face his brother. "You should visit her. I'm sure she misses you." And before Alejandro could refuse the comment, Carlos was already gone from his bedroom.

The injured boy frowned at the idea. Him, visit Heather? It was simply out of the question. There was no doubt in his mind that she would probably despise every fiber in his being until he combusted into flames from the sheer amount of loathing. But Carlos was always right when it came to things such as this and it made Alejandro question whether or not he should pay his former enemy a visit. Despite having no bond with his eldest brother, Alejandro was thankful for the insightful words he rarely shared with him. Even it seemed as if he sided with José more frequently than himself, Carlos was always willing to give Alejandro very wise advice whenever he was around. He smiled at the thought of visiting Heather and receiving a startled but slightly warm welcome from the girl. He could picture embracing her, exchanging delicate touches, inhaling her sweet scent, everything…

But no, he couldn't fool himself. Alejandro had ruined any chances of being with happy with Heather at the peak of the active volcano. Besides, he didn't need a woman to find happiness when he was a million dollars richer than the other contestants. And if he honestly needed the companionship to fill a hole in his heart, his simple minded Courtney would come yipping at his heels for affection and attention. She easily traded any sort of financial reward for Alejandro's supposed love at the reunion the other night to his delight. Yes… Alejandro had it all in his life with just a few burning setbacks. He wasn't, of course, trapped in a bed in a depressing hospital, surrounded by meaningless gifts and insincere visitors. Alejandro smirked at the thought before giving a small chuckle. It wasn't his fault Heather was burned – not at all! It was simply her fault for getting distracted. He maintained his focus the entire way – his love was merely a figment of his imagination and he had used tactics to win the game! He smiled, repeated these thoughts, and pushed off of the bed to take make a quick trip to the kitchen.

He was humming to himself merrily by the time he made it into the kitchen, ignoring the fact that José was already in there and eating a sandwich as he scrolled through the contents of his phone. He didn't even acknowledge when his older brother called him that detestable nickname!

"Hohooo, looks like someone's in a good mood…" José laughed into his sandwich. He pocketed his phone quickly as if this moment truly deserved his entire attention. Alejandro humming grew even happier in response to José's comment and he snatched the sandwich out of his hands to finish the rest. José blinked in surprise but grinned widely at the display. "And feeling bold! What happened to you, Al?"

"I just realized that I'm not to blame for anything. _Soy innocente!" _José smiled at Alejandro's current glee and leaned onto the sink counter with slight amusement.

"Really? _Por qué, mi hermano?_"

"I won that prize money fair and square. It's not my fault those other people were too idiotic to notice I was fooling them all and actually believed I was a good guy. I was focused the entire show and my tactics took me to the top!"

"Really now_?_ Well it's good to see you take after me!" Alejandro's cheery smile faltered slightly at the statement and he reluctantly swallowed the last bit of José's sandwich. As he wiped the crumbs off his face, José edged closer to him from the sink counter with a look of pride twinkling in his eyes. "So cold and so deceitful! Truly a spectacle! I must admit you do make me proud. Actually convincing yourself you're the better man for tricking everyone out of success and that you weren't accountable for the various injuries, grievances, or heart break on the show – simply wonderful!"

Alejandro nodded slowly at his brother's words. His stomach was making those same uncomfortable flips of guilt, but he shook his head dizzily and told himself it was just slight indigestion.

"You even stooped to break three hearts on television! It was truly a sight to see when you destroyed that Heather girl's world. She deserved it all though; she was just as ruthless as you but not as smart. Stupid, pitiful girl. You're much better without her, Al. People like that are simply trash, _right_?" Alejandro coughed dryly when José clapped his large hand on hi back as answer, which seemed to satisfy the older Burromuerto.

"I wouldn't visit her at all, if I were you. You should just leave her there to rot in that hospital bed, _right_?"

"…Right…" Alejandro murmured. José's smiled widened and he pulled away from the pale teen to grab his car keys off the counter. He made his way for the front door and called to the shaken Alejandro.

"It's so nice to finally relate to you, Al! Who would have thought you were just like me!"

As soon as José's jubilant laughter faded away behind the closing of the front door, Alejandro spun around to the sink and let the contents of his stomach travel up his throat and into the empty basin. He panted wearily and shuddered. He would not turn into José at any costs. He was no clone, he was Alejandro! But as he wiped his mouth weakly, his stomach made more uncomfortable knots and flips at how easily he denied his mistakes and how easily he denied his aching need to see Heather. He coughed again, spat into the sink once more, and made his way back to his bedroom after rinsing down the area with water.

Alejandro was innocent. It wasn't his fault that his competitors were naïve, it wasn't his fault they weren't as smart as him, it wasn't his fault they all lost and he won. And it wasn't his fault that Heather had gotten so hurt.

But if that was the case, then why did his stomach continue to react to his brooding guilt?

* * *

AN: Thankfully school at the moment isn't as busy as I speculated and is giving me some time to update for the moment. I'm gonna try and update frequently to chapter six of this so it will be at the same point as my other bit the other work-in-progress I have up and then I'll update between the two.

Anyways, please feel free to leave any thoughts behind! They always push me forward to update sooner and sometimes give me some more ideas to add into the plotline! Thank you so much for reading this bit and I hoped you enjoyed it! Until next time!


	4. Courtney and Heather

AN: Hello once again readers! I just wanted to let everyone know before the story continues that I am not a fluent Spanish speaker, so if I do make mistakes within the text spoken in the language, please bare with me! I try my best to be accurate, but you can never be too sure with some translations!

And some of you may wonder if Carlos is actually a canon character. In the episode "African Lying Society", Alejandro mentions in a confessional that he has an older brother named Carlos that plays professional soccer. It's very similar to when he mentions his Uncle Julio in "The Ex-Files" since he speaks of him because of a talent he possesses. The episode has yet to air in the US and I don't think it has been aired in Canada as well, but you can easily find the episode on the site Veoh! His family will be seen a lot in the later chapters of this along with Heather's family.

Thank you again for taking the time to read this chapter and I hope you all enjoy it!

* * *

Alejandro looked at his plate of food and frowned. Once again, José was dominating the dinner conversation with his fantastic achievements in college and receiving the highest praise from his father. His mother was smiling softly with a twinkle her eyes and Carlos just hummed his approval as he shoveled food into his mouth quietly. But there Alejandro was, staring at his plate full of food and wondering if the churning in his stomach was due to José's obnoxious smirks from across the table or the fact that it was now three weeks since the Total Drama World Tour season finale. Three weeks since he had spoken, seen, or heard of Heather. It was a good thing, really. Or that's what Alejandro told himself.

"_Por qué no estás comiendo, mijo?_ Is the medicine making you feel ill again?" Alejandro felt his mother's hand ghost over his bandaged arm delicately, making him jolt in his seat and back to reality. He stared at his own hand and his frown creased even more. The surgery had been a success, or that's what the surgeons told his family, and he had recovered very well compared to most burn victims. However, he was prescribed various amounts of medications and antibiotics in order for the recovery to continue its smooth path. The prescriptions often had him lethargic and irritable, but this was normal for Alejandro when his older brother was in town.

"_Ay_, Vanessa, you spoil your boys too much! Leave the boy to himself!" Mr. Burromuerto barked heartily and shot Alejandro a sympathetic grin. Alejandro's lips twitched upward for a short moment before he continued to frown at his food, the twisting in his stomach becoming stronger. His father always seemed to try and act like the perfect father figure but he was so disconnected from his sons, only having time to gloat about their various achievements to his fellow diplomats whenever he managed to hear word of it from his wife.

"Oh, hush, Enrique! You know Alejandro's the sensitive one!"

"Yea, Papa! Al's the girl of the family, remember?" José simpered across the table lightly. Carlos chuckled before he took a sip from his glass of water and his father laughed, slapping José on the back with admiration. Mrs. Burromuerto clucked her tongue in disapproval as she rubbed Alejandro's tense shoulders. He glowered at his food and pushed the plate away from him hastily.

"Excuse me, I am feeling rather sick." He could hear his mom call out to him in concern as he quickly retreated to the stairs but he ignored the calls. Alejandro growled in anger as he locked his bedroom door behind him and kicked a pile of books on the floor out of sheer rage. Luckily, they were José's second-hand books he'd graciously given to his brother for his studies. Completely worthless in Alejandro's eyes.

Normally in situations such as these, Alejandro would pound his fists angrily against his desk or the wall in order to vent out the tremendous anger that coursed through him but it would not be as satisfying to do such with only one good hand. He snarled in frustration at his annoying burden and opted to kick the side of his bed instead, instantly regretting it as a sharp pain shot up through his leg. He cursed, growled again, and kicked at the books his brother had given him once more. He would've continued his angry binge if it wasn't for a long stretch of vibrations coming from his pocket earnestly, making Alejandro freeze from attempting to chuck his desk lamp to the ground.

He ravaged his pants for his phone in anger and glared at the screen. When he recognized who was the source of the incoming call, his jaw tightened and his thumb ghosted over the keypad to reject the call. But knowing this person, they would just continue to dial his number until he finally answered or leave and endless amount of voicemails. Alejandro exhaled deeply and brought the phone to his face despite his reluctance.

"Now is not a good time, Courtney. Can you call me back later?"

"Well hello to you too, Alejandro. My day was great, thanks for asking!" Alejandro scowled at the girl's sharp sarcasm and stomped his foot in anger. He could hear a muffled cry of surprise from below – probably his mother caught off guard by the sudden noise – and restrained himself from chucking the phone out the window.

"Really, Courtney. Can we please talk some other time?"

"No way! You haven't bothered to call me in over two weeks and I miss you! Let's talk it out, okay? What's bothering you?" The young man sighed in aggravation at his girlfriend's persistence and fell to his bed tiredly. It seemed like he wouldn't weasel his way out of this phone call no matter what and Courtney was definitely a formidable foe when she was pushed to a certain point.

"My older brother has overstayed his welcome, basically…"

"José? Do you know when he is leaving?"

"I doubt anytime soon. He and my other brother Carlos were supposed to stay until after my surgery, but it looks like they will be staying longer for vacation or something..."

"Well, that can't be so bad, can it? Maybe you two can bury the hatchet and get along better!"

Alejandro's right hand fisted the fabric of his pants in anger at the suggestion. Was Courtney really that daft? She may not have known the details between the brothers but it was clear on the show how much Alejandro despised José. Besides, if they wanted to be cordial, the two had had up to eighteen years to settle everything and that obviously didn't happen. Instead, José continued to make his life difficult – from his home and across the nation.

"We will see… For now, I will tolerate his existence. I am sure I can last for a few more weeks,"

"You know, I could always come by to keep you sane… You only live about a half an hour away from me…" The obvious hint made Alejandro swallow a gag. Courtney may be very intellectual but she made it painfully clear on the show and in the real world she wasn't as skilled with subtlety.

"Perhaps… For now, I will bare the burden on my own. Thank you for the offer–"

"Well then how about we see each other tomorrow? It is a Saturday and I can take a break from my scholarship applications!"

Alejandro paused. If he agreed, he would be forced to spend a day with Courtney and deal with her incessant chatter. If he didn't agree, he would be bothered with Courtney's childish accusations of his lack of commitment. Again, Alejandro fisted his pants and forced a smile to go with his sweet voice.

"Sounds like a date, Courtney."

* * *

Alejandro combed a hand through his hair as he waited on a bench outside a coffee shop, wearily looking around him behind a pair of aviators to avoid being recognized in public. The fame of the Total Drama series had won him some fans – some more rabid than others – but an equally large hate group. Although it didn't faze him as much as others would expect, Alejandro disliked how often the topic of Heather arose in their presence. It seemed like no one wanted to drop the finale accident or let Alejandro live it down. He looked at his burned hand at the thought, which was now wrapped in a fiberglass cast for further protection, and frowned again.

'_It's Heather's fault_,' he reminded himself. '_Heather and her conniving ways. Heather's fault._'

"Alejandro?" The tanned boy stirred in his seat and looked up to see Courtney herself, looking as polished as usual. He managed to give her a small smile and raised his bad arm to wave lightly to her. She squealed happily and hurried to sit next to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck in rushed excitement to Alejandro's displeasure, forcing him to cough when her shoulder knocked clumsily into his windpipe.

"Oh no, sorry, sorry! I'm just so excited to see you again! I've been so lonely…" Courtney batted her eyelashes in an attempt to dazzle the teen but he was to busy coughing raucously.

"Ah, _no preocupe. Soy fino_!" When Courtney only stared blankly at him, Alejandro's faint smile disappeared. "Aren't you Hispanic, Courtney?"

"Oh yes! But my parents never taught me how to speak Spanish and I chose to take French and Chinese in high school. Why do you ask?"

"…Never mind, it's not important. Shall we go?" At the question, Courtney immediately bobbed her head in excitement and latched onto Alejandro's right arm. He smiled lightly but he was slapping his face in his mind. It was simply astounding in the worst way that Courtney didn't speak Spanish despite being Hispanic. It was mind boggling, a hindrance, and a turn off to Alejandro. But it could be easily overlooked, just like her excessive need to be right, biased-perspective, and her superiority complex. The more he reassured himself, the less Courtney seemed to be a splinter in his side – or that's what he told himself.

They walked into a movie theater not too far from the meeting place and purchased a matinee showing of a recent film that was a cliché romantic comedy couples went out to see. The whole time, Courtney leaned on Alejandro and hinted all the while how much she wanted. There were the delicate touches she left on his bare arm, an 'accidental' bump of hands when they reached for their shared drink, and the occasional affectionate rub on Alejandro's knees. Each action made Alejandro shiver, but it wasn't for the expected feelings of yearning. His skin seemed to crawl each time Courtney laid a finger on his body, impure and tainting what good skin he had left. He overlooked the feelings though and focused harder on the film. Sooner or later it would have to end and by then, Courtney would be out of his hair for a few relieving weeks.

He amazingly managed to endure Courtney's light but meaningful touches until the end of the movie, coming out of the show room with Courtney criticizing the mediocrity of the film's plot and proposing her own methods of making the film Academy worthy. Alejandro made it seem as if he agreed with everything she said but he was playing along and wishing he was in another place. Preferably alone at home where no one could bother him with such trivial matters.

Just as the two were making their way to the exit of the theater, Alejandro managed to catch a glimpse of vibrant hair pass by him quickly. It wasn't the fact that it was so colorful that caught his attention but the fact that it was a familiar shade of purple, a color he had only seen one person dare to sport. His head whipped around rapidly to catch the person with such an extreme shade of hair and he stopped in his tracks to see none other than Sierra chatting animatedly to her company.

Alejandro squinted and let his jaw drop to see short and nerdy Cody laughing at whatever Sierra was telling him, the two fellow cast mates making a slight detour in the lobby of the theater as Cody searched his pockets for something. Courtney was almost out the door when she finally realized Alejandro had stopped following her towards the exit. She didn't seem to notice he was staring at the two people a few yards away when she reached his side and tugged on his shirt sleeve in concern.

"Helloooo? Alejandro?" The fact that Cody's head whipped up at the sound of the teen's name showed how close they were. Alejandro and Cody locked eyes in a shocked stare for a few moments while each other's female company looked around curiously. Sierra blinked blankly down at the boy before looking around to see Alejandro and her eyes widened to the size of saucers. Courtney stilled looked dumbfounded and tugged on Alejandro again.

"Alejandro? What's up? You're kind of freaking me out here!" Alejandro simply shook the girl off his arm and walked forward steadily. His deceitful smile was already forming when he noticed the intense hate in Cody's eyes and how Sierra retreated back a few steps. She eyed him with a look of deep dislike but Alejandro chuckled at how her eyes betrayed her, flickering nervously in fear for a quick second when Alejandro's green eyes narrowed in inquisitively.

"You've got to be freaking kidding me," Cody hissed and took a step forward aggressively. Alejandro simply continued to smile and looked expectantly at the significantly shorter boy. "What the hell are you doing here!"

"Well, I'm in a movie theater. You're in a movie theater. I dunno, Cody, you tell me," Cody growled at Alejandro's response and flicked his gaze over Alejandro's shoulder. Courtney was walking towards them now, looking surprised to see Sierra and himself at the same movie theater but also slightly agitated.

"And how are you doing? You still have some zest from the show's reunion, I see. And Sierra, you've got some hair back! Your hair is _muy a la moda,_" Sierra frowned, instinctively bringing a hand to touch her spiky tufts of hair. It had grown some, leaving enough hair for Sierra to form a small bang over her forehead and spike the inch of hair she'd grown over the past few weeks. It was odd, but it definitely fit the girl's consistent highs in her actions and personality.

"I'm fine, Ale-_jerk_-dro. Thanks for asking, but we really must be going. Wouldn't want to miss our movie." Sierra nudged Cody to take a hint and leave but the boy stood his ground, glaring at Alejandro and gritting his teeth in anger.

"You know you're the cause of all the crap Heather's going through? Have you even bothered to apologize yet, or are you still too much of a coward?" Alejandro's lips twitched unpleasantly at the sharp question. Instantly, his stomach was coiling in that dreadful guilt. Only this time a bout of rage was beginning to form from the audacity Cody had to bring that girl up in the conversation so quickly.

"Watch what you say around me, _imbécil_…"

"Or what? Are you going to punch me with you gimp hand? Oooh, I'm _so _scared!" At the taunt, Alejandro quickly raised his hand as if he was going to backhand the smaller boy. A small sense of satisfaction eased over him when Cody flinched at the raised appendage but in a split second, it was replaced with that same angry look. Alejandro glowered down at him before he brought his hand back to his side and turned on his heel. Courtney was saying something to him but he ignored her words. The pulsing in his head deafened all the sound around him. Cody and Sierra watched the two leave the vicinity in a rush, exchanging looks of relief and distress for a short moment.

…_do you feel any regret?…_

The sun was setting in the distance, causing a beautiful spectrum of warm colors to reflect over the few clouds in the sky. Alejandro stared at the horizon vacantly. Courtney shifted in her chair and sipped her drink in silence, watching her boyfriend with a mix of confusion, aggravation, and concern. An hour had already passed since the couple had run into Cody and Sierra, narrowly avoiding a scuffle after an exchange of heated words. The way Alejandro had quickly reacted at the mention of Heather had startled Courtney; she had been under the impression Alejandro was over her already. But the way he had venomously spoken to Cody and how he looked so _furious_ when he heard Heather's name…

"Alejandro," She started to say, managing to get Alejandro to tear his eyes away from the distance and onto Courtney. "Do you like me?"

"I do," Alejandro forced himself to respond quickly, shooting a charming smile at Courtney. The girl narrowed her eyes at his hasty words and the teen just shot a confused look at her. "Why do you ask, Courtney?"

"What does Heather mean to you?" Alejandro's face grew steely at the mention of his Asian rival, suddenly becoming very cold in his body language. Courtney's stomach twisted in a knot and she made an aggravated growl. "So you love her, right?"

"Love is not the word I would use, Courtney…" She looked at him with a startled look, partially out of sheer hope and surprise she was wrong about her normally accurate assumptions. "Heather is an anomaly in my existence – nothing but trouble and a self-absorbed human being. That girl betrayed me and if there's one thing I can't forgive, it is betrayal."

"Oh… I see, now! I knew I was just being silly!" Courtney laughed eagerly and squeezed Alejandro's hand affectionately on the surface of the table. Alejandro returned the gesture with a slight squeeze for reassurance to the girl's insecurity. Courtney's silence was short lived as she began to babble about everything that was happening in her life – the endless applications to Ivy League schools in the United States, her constant commitment to community service, and the annoying notoriety she had gained because of Total Drama's recent season. All the while, Alejandro forced a small smile as he reminded himself Heather was an evil temptress that deserved everything she had gotten at the end of World Tour. What he had said was true – it must have been! These last three weeks were filled with nothing but these thoughts…

They ended up going their separate ways not long after that moment due to Courtney's schedule – not that Alejandro minded in the least. He came home with an upset stomach, which he blamed on being angry about the events that transpired that same day. Luckily, there was no José to taunt him relentlessly with that cool and collected smile, or his overbearing mother that bothered him with every medication he was prescribed, or his incredibly oblivious father that would ask if he was anything like José yet. Just Carlos, who was sitting in the family room, watching a rerun of that accursed show Alejandro had the pleasure of being apart of. He was sitting on the couch, his back to Alejandro when the boy entered the room and too engrossed with the events of that particular episode to acknowledge his brother's entrance.

"_Otra vez? Apague la televisón,_ Carlos!" Alejandro hissed angrily as he recognized the episode the episode's settings were in the Serengeti of Africa, barely reaching the intro of the musical score. Carlos ignored his brother's angry demand and only increased the volume with two clicks from the remote.

"Did you know most of the music sung is auto-tuned? Could it be you are embarrassed by your singing?" Alejandro rolled his eyes at his oldest brother's remark. Leave it to Carlos to be blunt and dodge every little thing someone said to him. Nonetheless, Alejandro stepped forward to the couch and tried to yank the remote out of his brother's hands. Carlos' reflexes were much faster, though, and he managed to slap Alejandro hard upside the head. He fell next to Carlos on the soft cushions and the older Burromuerto raised the volume once more. "_Calme, mi hermanito._"

Alejandro made a disgruntled sound and tried to snatch the remote away from Carlos a second time. And a second time Alejandro failed, receiving another sharp blow to the back of his head.

"Why do you watch this crap, Carlos? You know it bothers me! You're no better than Jo–"

"It's the only way I feel close to you, Alejandro." The words struck the younger Burromuerto unexpectedly. Alejandro opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it when he realized he had nothing to say. "That's one thing I don't like about you – you're very insensitive to the feelings of others, you know?"

"…_L-lo siento_…"

"Don't worry. I don't mind. I just thought you should know. Hm, that Heather girl sings with a nice melody…" Alejandro felt much too sorry to be bothered with the mention of Heather. He hadn't thought that Carlos watched the show just to see his little brother; he just assumed he got his sadistic kicks from it like José. He felt foolish for even reacting so childishly around the much older Burromuerto.

"Apologize." Alejandro jumped. The last thing he wanted to do was tread on Carlos' toes again without any knowledge of doing so.

"W-what? I thought I did! I'm sorr–"

"To Heather, Alejandro. You're being insensitive again, you know?" Carlos raised an eyebrow at his brother's contorted face. The younger Latino opened his mouth to claim it was Heather's fault for everything but Carlos hushed him with a cluck of his tongue. "Stop blaming others for your mistakes, little brother. It's very unbecoming of a Burromuerto."

"But Heather deserved it! She was ruthless from the start and never had any intention of being fair!"

"And you, Alejandro?" At the question, Alejandro stilled. How could he forget? He was the most hated contestant by the time he reached Hawaii for the season finale, with everyone cheering on Heather – the original antagonist of the show – to beat him to an embarrassing defeat. He had no intention of playing it fair either – he would do whatever it took to come out on top.

"Have you ever considered why Heather's like that? You should probably stop to think about her feelings. She does remind me a lot of you."

"What is that supposed to mean, Carlos?"

"Ask for forgiveness and ye shall be forgiven." And with that, Carlos handed the TV remote to Alejandro and pushed himself off of the couch. Alejandro watched the man grab his keys from the coffee table and reach for a lone soccer ball under the table. His eyes continuing to follow Carlos until he reached the entrance to the family room, stating he was going out to practice his offensive techniques. The sound of the door closing made Alejandro relax slightly as he looked down at the device in his hands with guilt. Then his tired eyes looked back at the screen, managing to catch a glimpse of his then self with Heather smirking smugly as Duncan was pummeled by the rabid Ezekiel. He growled, threw the remote to the floor, and left the room with the TV still on.

Where would Alejandro even begin to say sorry for everything? He didn't even know what to think anymore. He had worked so hard to convince himself that Heather was an evil bitch. But there was that subconscious feeling of regret that always followed him when he thought of Heather or when he told himself that he wasn't responsible for the unfortunate outcomes in the show. He slammed his fist against the hallway wall when realization shot through him like a spike of lightning.

"Damn it all… I'm still in love with her…"

Everything smashed into him like a foul sucker punch; Heather's embarrassed blush when Alejandro had gotten the better of her, her sharp tongue, her determination, her soft smile in those rare intimate moments in the cargo hold – _everything_. Alejandro made a frustrated growl again. He was depraved of any contact with that girl and he didn't know of any way he could find her sensibly. From what he already knew, Heather deactivated all of her accounts on the popular social networks of the internet or just stopped bothering to update them. And thanks to the urgings of threatening lawyers, the show was forced to keep the girl's medical residence confidential. No one he knew of was aware of Heather's secret presence and it infuriated Alejandro to no end. He grunted and hurried to his bedroom, ready to go into a raging binge.

But then it hit him, much faster than his other realizations to his satisfaction.

_Sierra_ knew where Heather was.

* * *

AN: Well that wraps up chapter four. Hopefully the next will come out sooner than this, but it's highly unlikely. A special thank you to everyone who waited patiently for the update and the new readers who noticed this story and took the time to read through all the chapters! It really does mean a lot to me!

And the reviews – thank you SO much to my faithful reviewers! You're words really do help – be it a critique on the writing, encouragement, comments on how you enjoyed the chapter, or simply your opinions! I hope to continue to do a great job with this story and receive more of your reviews!

Thanks again to everyone! Until next time!


	5. Harold, DJ, and LeShawna

AN: Hello everyone! I'd like to say I'm so sorry this took so long to update! School and other extracurricular activities were burdening me and when I was ready to update sometime ago, my computer crashed and lost all the things I had written before I could save it onto a removable USB. So I hope this chapter will suffice for the long wait! Especially since it's the chapter everyone's been requesting and dying to see! Thank you again to everyone who's started to tune in to this story, review, favorite, and alert this story. It means so much! Enjoy!

* * *

"_I left Bridgette stuck to a pole! Robbed LeShawna of her fabulous soul! Made even Courtney lose control! Now I'm gonna leave you wedged up in a hole!_"

"Shut up."

"_This is how we will ennnnnnnd itttttttt, this game we have played! This is how we will ennnnnnnd itttttttt, your bill must be paid!_"

"_Ooooooo-ooo-ooo-oooooh!_"

"Both of you, shut up!"

"_Shouldn't have mocked you for having to dig, help me out and I'll be your human drill rig!_"

"_You think I'm gonna fall for that? Ain't a tea party, it's combat!_"

"Shut. Up. Now!"

"_THIS IS HOW WE WILL ENNNNNNND ITTTTTTTT_!" Damien howled as he stood upon a chair in the corner of a room, performing a rendition of his favorite Total Drama World Tour before his sisters. Annette was smiling in the corner adjacent to him and singing along softly with amusement. Heather, however, was balling her good hand into a fist, glaring daggers into her sheets at the song that wrought back horrible memories.

"_This game we have played!_" Annette sang melodically – much better than Heather had done on that particular episode – and elicited a mischievous grin from her youngest sibling.

"_THIS IS HOW WE WILL ENNNNNNND ITTTTTTTT_!"

"_Your bill must be paid!_"

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Heather shrieked, finally pushed over the edge. Both Damien and Annette stopped for a shocked moment and exchanged startled glances, but they quickly turned into smug smirks at their victory. Heather made a furious screech and let her right arm viciously reach out for a flower vase beside her bed. She raised it in an attempt to throw it at Damien but was stopped when she heard a sharp gasp from the door way.

"Heather Yamamoto! You damn well better put that vase down and act like a lady! For God's sake, what's come over you, young lady?" Heather's mother made haste strides to her daughter's side and pulled the vase out of the girl's shaking hand. Damien rushed his mother as soon as she set the would-be-weapon back on Heather's bed side counter and wept dramatically.

"M-mom! I was only trying to s-sing Heather a song to make her f-feel better!" He was sobbing loudly, to which Mrs. Yamamoto cooed softly as she patted his hair with a mother's love. Mr. Yamamoto raised his brows in shock and looked at Heather incredulously. All she could do was open her mouth and flap her lips stupidly as no words came out. His eyes hardened and he spoke coolly and quietly to Heather. The last thing he wanted was to draw more attention to themselves.

"Have you lost your mind, Heather? Can't you be civil with your brother for _one_ moment?"

"_Me_? Have _you_ lost _your_ mind?" Heather's voice broke angrily and she began to shake with rage. Once again, her parents sided with her siblings even when it was clear they were torturing her. Annette quickly intervened from her quiet spot as Mr. Yamamoto opened his mouth to rest her hand delicately on her father's shoulder. His face softened, as expected, and Annette shot him a knowing look.

"Heather's probably just tired, Dad. Maybe we should go and let her rest some more?" Annette's feigned sincerity was gobbled up by her oblivious parents, both whom faintly delighted at the thought. She turned to Heather and gave her a sympathetic smile but her sister ignored the look. Her eyes were too busy staring at everyone's feet, looking glazed over and glassy.

"You're probably right, Annette… Heather-Feather, we should get going anyways. Your mother and I are very bu—"

"Just go already."

There was a small moment of silence that filled the room after Heather's biting command but no one seemed phased. Instead, Mrs. Yamamoto placed a chaste kiss on the side of her face while her husband lightly touched her head. All were empty actions. They weren't one to object to what Heather wanted as long as they would hear the end of her griping. So whatever she wanted she got, and if she wanted them gone, her parents were more than happy to oblige. When they did leave, Damien and Annette lingered for a moment. Heather dared not to look up in order to retain her dignity but her brother came running to her bedside, shoving his face in her line of vision. She flinched at the eye contact and a triumphant smirk spread across his face.

"See you later, _Heather-Heifer_!" He chided maliciously and quickly slapped Heather's burned leg before he ran out of the room in a fit of laughter. Heather made a strangled sound of pain, feeling her eyes water more from her sudden burst of physical pain. She heard her oldest sibling let out a soft chuckle before her heels clicked out the door as well, leaving Heather hissing pathetically at the excruciating pain in her left thigh. She stopped breathing for a few seconds in a lame attempt to stop the pain but she only felt her chest tighten at the emotional damage that wracked her body.

'_Fuck them all,_' she told herself weakly as she felt a fat tears swell in her eyes. They threatened to fall down her face but Heather sucked in a deep breath, continuing to tell herself she was fine. '_You don't need them, Heather. You're better than them._' Her lip quivered against her better wishes but she trained her eyes on a deflating balloon opposite to her. He weary orbs locked on the lame balloon, studying every little flaw in its weak floating gait and trying to make the tears go away with her intense gaze. The drops managed to disappear the longer she observed the balloon with her powerful gaze but they her eyes grew tired. Soon they were fighting to stay open, her eyelashes fluttering softly against her cheeks as she thought about crushing her siblings with an iron fist. But now the room was getting hazy, turning dark, and all sound around Heather began to deafen.

* * *

There was a loud crumbling sound around her now and Heather shook with a start. She found herself crouching on a rocky surface that was elevated amongst an array of tropical palm trees. Shakily, she stood to her feet and gazed at her surroundings. She was in Hawaii at that damned volcano – she could see Chris and the cast from the Total Drama series applauding her from the mountain trail to the peak of the volcano's mouth and cheering for her. For _Heather_! Happiness was filling her; for once in her life, she had won something without cheating. She hadn't been robbed of victory like all those other times. She was a winner for once.

The crumbling sound was growing louder and louder around Heather, though. Her face faltered when she realized Chris and the rest of the cast stopped clapping suddenly to look at her with sheer horror. Before she could even ask what was wrong, the ground beneath her broke and she began to fall into the volcano's opening. She wanted to scream for help but her voice failed her, so she flailed helplessly as she fell closer and closer to the sweltering lava. She tried to scream again but nothing came out as she dropped to her death.

Just when she was meters away from falling into the lava, her arm was yanked upward roughly. She gasped and looked to see Alejandro trying desperately to pull her over a ledge in the side of the volcano.

"Don't worry, Heather! I won't let you fall!" He grunted with difficulty and Heather could feel his rough hands tighten around her dainty wrist. Relief washed over her like a refreshing splash of water – seeing Alejandro again made her oddly happy and it delighted her that he was actually trying to help her. She let her other arm reach for his body shakily and the Latin heartthrob forced a grin on his sweaty visage. As she tried to heave herself up on the ledge, Heather could hear an earsplitting scream from above her before feeling something heavy whizz past her body and into the lava. Her body swayed viciously at the sudden movement and she could feel Alejandro's grasp lose some of its grip on her arm. Fearfully, Heather looked below her to see what had fallen.

It was Ezekiel, screaming and clawing at the air in pain as he sunk further into the volcano's contents. The few strands of hair he had left burned off, his skin blackened, and soon his flesh was beginning to melt off. But just before his neck disappeared into the thick and fiery liquid, the rest of his flesh fell off his skull. There were no bones that appeared. Just Heather's own face, screwed up in intense pain with wide eyes panicking and desperate for help. Now she realized the shrill cry wasn't Ezekiel's pained voice but her own and her heart stopped. Heather was now painfully aware of how sweaty the heat made her hands and how she could slowly feel the tight grasp on her arm loosen with every second. She quickly looked back up to see Alejandro smile at her in a twisted manor.

"Oops." That was all Alejandro said when he let go of Heather's arm and all the while he smiled down at her. Heather's voice returned and she screamed, becoming Ezekiel and clawing at the sky as the lava swallowed her lithe body.

* * *

"Are you okay, Heather?"

Heather woke up with a start, gasping for air loudly and greedily. Her body gleamed with a cold sweat and she could hear her heart thump loudly in her ears. There was no tropical setting around her but the mundane walls of her hospital room with her meaningless gifts. She let her right hand clutch at her chest painfully in an attempt to compose herself and she breathed through her nostrils heavily.

When her heart finally managed to slow down, Heather let her eyes fall to the ground to look at the feet of her intruders. She recognized one of them had skinny legs adorned in jeans and wearing unkempt sneakers while the other two weren't wearing jeans, revealing dark skinned legs and feet, both wearing sandals. Heather's adrenaline spiked and she began to shake again.

"What the hell are _you_ doing here?"

"We came to visit, _gosh_!" Harold wheezed defensively and rolled his eyes in annoyance at Heather's cold greeting. DJ patted his shoulder reassuringly and stepped closer to the bed. Heather flinched and moved away as far as her sleeping quarters would allow it.

"How did you find me?" Heather asked angrily and brought her covers closer to her chest. She was embarrassed to be seen in such a broken state before people she showed very little compassion towards.

"Well, you see, Sierra has this blog up... It's called 'Heather's Recovery' and she e-mailed the link to everyone from the cast. It has a bunch of pictures of you with her and Cody and it has all the information on where you're staying." Heather's eyes widened and she was about to scream obscenities but DJ stepped closer. "But don't worry! It's private, so the only people who can view it are the people who have the password!"

"Yah, it's totally protected. Only a hacker with top tier skills could break into the account," Harold commented with an air of confidence. Heather frowned bitterly still.

She didn't like the idea of anyone other than Cody and Sierra seeing her in this state, let alone the thought of having her recovery posted on the internet. She shuddered at the thought of her past cast mates seeing her vulnerable moments with her unlikely companions. Over the past few weeks, they had grown closer to her than she would have ever believed. They talked freely once they broke down her awkward boundaries and actually had a few good laughs. On more than one occasion, Heather even allowed herself to be seen smiling in a picture with either Cody or Sierra or doing silly faces in a shot. And the most startling thing was the fact that she could only look them in the eyes. With everyone else, she avoided eye contact in fear of being hated, gawked at, or judged. But in Sierra and Cody's friendly gaze, Heather felt…_normal_.

"Please don't look so mad, Heather! We travelled a long way to see you! I've been worried about how you've been…" DJ breathed. From her peripheral, she could see Harold nod with a little reluctance. But Heather's eyes were focused on a figure that stood a distance from the other visitors.

"And what about you, oh _fair LeShawna_?" The large girl jumped at being called to directly and shrank back slightly in embarrassment. Heather would smirk in any other instance but all she could feel was extreme rage. How dare this bitch come see her.

"Have you come to maybe knock out some more teeth, hm? Maybe take out more unjust rage onto little old me?"

"Listen, Heather–" LeShawna started weakly but Heather would have none of it. She bared her teeth angrily and let out what she had been holding in for the longest time since the show had ended.

"No, _you_ listen, you fat sadistic bitch! You've put me through enough hell. How _dare_ you come and show your face here! I thought maybe you'd change just a little after the second season of Chris' bullshit show, but I was stupid to think such a thing! I was the only one that didn't shun your sorry ass after your little stunt and then you came back, all high and mighty with your goddamned pride. You tossed me aside and forgot all about our little would-be friendship and acted like I took a piss in your coffee! Shows what really matters to you, doesn't it? Who am I to talk, though, right? I'm just a stupid skinny bitch who steps on people for my own gain, right?

"At least I tell it like it is, LeShawna, and I never stray from the truth. I fucking warned you about Alejandro, and what did you do? You thought I was being mean old Heather again, stepping on you in order to have Alejandro _all_ to myself. Shows what you know! He had his way with you and threw you away like last week's trash, just like he did with Bridgette, Courtney, and _me_. You saw what he did in Hawaii! He's the goddamn reason I'm here, looking like a pathetic mess, and with everyone jeering and cheering that Heather's lost _again_. But hey, better me than you right, LeShawna? At least I went down with some damn dignity instead of fall for his shitty tactics. Right?"

"Heather, hold on –" DJ hastily tried to calm Heather, but now LeShawna was on a roll, looking just as pissed off as Heather.

"WHAT! Are you being for real! You're so full of yourself, Heather! I did nothing wrong to you–!"

"Bullshit, you bitch!" Heather sobbed. She was so mad, so stressed, but above all else, she was hurt. She didn't care that tears were staining her face now, revealing how vulnerable she was to the girl despised the most since World Tour. "All you've done is _torment_ me! After I looked out for you! Who the hell does that, huh, LeShawna? I may not be the best illustration of good will towards man, but I have feelings just like everyone else!"

There was a stunned silence besides Heather's stifled sobs. She was covering her face and shaking pitifully, angry she'd been broken again and let LeShawna have the satisfaction of seeing her cry. What was really minutes of silence seemed like eons before anyone spoke. And when someone did, Heather was sniffling and looking out the window of her hospital room, wiping her sticky face with a glower.

"Heather… I'm… I'm sorry," Heather let out a skeptical laugh before LeShawna could continue. But the larger girl didn't object angrily like she did before. "Really, Heather… I'm _so_ sorry for everything. You were right… about everything, really. I mean – I hate admitting it to you since we haven't been on the best of terms – but seriously, I was wrong. I guess I just didn't want you to have the upper hand over me again… You made it out longer than I did on Wawanakwa and even if you were voted out before me on the second season, I was hated for the longest time after. Then the third season came along and you were having that war with Gwen on the web, and you know that's my girl…"

"Why don't you stop trying to justify yourself and get the hell out?" Heather spoke angrily and LeShawna stopped her barrage of excuses.

"I'm sorry… What I'm trying to say is that I just wanted to make you feel as bad as I did with some of the crap you did to me, you know? I didn't mean for you to get as hurt as you did in Hawaii and I am sorry about what happened in Germany… It was out of line, Heather…"

Heather remained quiet. Her wounds were still fresh and smarting from what LeShawna had done to her but at the same time, she vied for that damned apology and to feel like LeShawna's equal. The small common ground they found on Total Drama Action let Heather foolishly believe she might actually have a friend on the show. And she always thought friends would let each other know when something was up. But LeShawna most certainly didn't think she was a friend of hers.

The defeated girl let out a shaky sigh and leaned back in her pillows. Her face hardened and she let her head fall onto her left shoulders, her eyes staring fiercely at her visitors shoes.

"…I'm a joke, huh?" she muttered angrily to no one in particular. "I've hardly got anyone on my side and all I do is scare people off…"

"That's not true, Heather," DJ was directly beside Heather now, looking torn between resting his hand on hers and remaining still before her. "Practically everyone from the show has been following Sierra's blog like diehard fans –"

"Kinda like how she was with Cody…" Harold thought aloud but was quickly silences when LeShawna elbowed him in the ribs. He coughed and mumbled a small apology before DJ resumed what he was saying.

"We're all worried about you, Heather… And a lot of us have been planning on days when to see you! Harold, LeShawna, and I happened to make this day our visit day because of the blog! You're not alone…"

Apart of Heather wanted to believe everything DJ was telling her to feel like she was wanted. She had no real friends up until this point in her life; she was always Heather the Heifer in her younger days because of how unlikeable she was and she was Heather the Bitch these days because she allowed no one to like her. Maybe she could turn out to be something more; she had already formed a close bond with Cody and Sierra.

She sucked in a harsh breath before letting her eyes slowly shift up towards DJ's eyes. She didn't see any ruse or ulterior motive in his hopeful eyes. Just plain old kindness. Something Heather had been devoid of since she was so small. She flinched when he smiled brightly at her, to which he apologized profusely. But Heather said nothing and just looked down at her sheets.

"Thank you, but it's too soon for me right now…" The tall boy's smile fell instantly and his shoulders drooped. Harold let out a nasally groan and LeShawna shuffled her feet awkwardly. "But…maybe you can come back one day… and we can all talk… like friends?"

Her words were innocent and hopeful, reminiscent to a child's. The last time Heather had ever spoken like this was when she'd started school as an overweight child, asking to join a game of tag. That memory ended with her sitting by herself in the sandbox while all the other kids participated in their fun shenanigans. So this time Heather hoped it would be different – she hoped that she could be a part of something for once and actually have someone that liked her.

"Girl, you don't even need to ask!" LeShawna laughed as Harold shifted his glasses.

"I'm totally bringing my Chambers and Dragoons set for the next visit."

"You're such a freak…" Heather stated, but she said it with a slight smile. Her visitors smiled at the breakthrough they had made and laughed lightly at the teasing remark. It was in that moment that Heather began to hope things would make a change for a better. Maybe she could learn to forgive and forget and let bygones be bygones. And maybe should could learn to be happy with the way things turned out.

But in the back of her mind, Heather knew a little better. Despite the sweet exchange of words she shared with the trio before they left, Heather laid back in her bed with a wry smile. No matter what she did, she would always have those fresh and bleeding wounds people left her with.

She had the scars – and burns – to prove it.

* * *

AN: Slightly fluffy and angsty at the same time! And also a tad shorter than most of my chapters, so I hope you all don't mind! Hopefully I won't have the same fiasco I faced with this chapter and the next update will be much sooner. Thank you all for sticking with this story and sharing your thoughts. Please review if you have the time and tell me what you think so far!

Until next time!


	6. Owen, Izzy, and Noah

AN: Hello readers! Well, before I started this story, I only had a slight idea where I wanted to go with it. By chapter three, I had written down what I wanted to happen in the story. And shortly after I last updated, I decided to go into full detail on how I want each chapter to go out and how I want this story to turn out. And when I counted all the chapters I had created, it amounted to _twenty-five_ in total! So seeing as this is the sixth chapter, WE STILL HAVE NINETEEN MORE CHAPTERS TO GO!

I hope I'll be able to make it to chapter twenty-five in the months to come and I'll try my very best to do weekly updates! If not weekly, maybe every ten days or so depending on how hectic my life is. But wow! Twenty-five! I hope all you readers out there will stick to this story until the very end and see what I have in store for the plot!

And if some of you are wondering who will visit Heather, it's primarily the cast of Total Drama World Tour. But a lot of you are making right guesses on who will see her next!

Anyways, on with our story! Enjoy!

* * *

Sometimes I wonder how I end up making such odd friends. I am, _by no means_, out of the ordinary or eccentric in anyway. Quite the contrary – I'm just your average genius. So why is it that I'm stuck with Owen and Izzy in this godforsaken hospital visiting _Heather_?

I curse that damned Chris McLean and his conspiracy show for landing me in such a predicament. What happened to Cody? We were pretty good friends, I liked to believe; we both had an interest for the latest video games and technology, and although he was not on par with my intelligence, he managed to make a witty comment or two. But don't misunderstand – I do enjoy Owen's company and his… girlfriend, I suppose. Albeit he is sometimes obnoxious, overly amicable, and lacking proper filters, he does manage to make chortle and smile at the oddest things. I guess I could say the same for Izzy since we were in an alliance at some point during McLean's show. Whatever. I still wonder how I end up making such odd friends.

"What's wrong little buddy?" I looked up from my book – not that I was really reading it anyways, it was the seventh time I've read it – to raise a sarcastic brow towards Owen.

"Remind me why we're visiting Heather again?"

"Because that totally creepy girl sent Izzy an e-mail with all this info on Heather!" Izzy replied, scribbling away in this scruffy notepad she seemed to carry with her everywhere. She was scrawling out quantum physics equations all over the page with a deranged look on her face. If she had retained that bland personality from Jamaica, I think we could've carried out an interesting and _sane_ conversation for once. But her neurotics came back to her shortly after her leave from the show.

"Takes a creeper to know a creeper," I drawled and flipped a page in my book.

"You would know, right, Noah?" Izzy let out a high-pitched giggle and I rolled my eyes. I didn't feel like being rude today since it was Owen's girlfriend. Besides, she wasn't really worth my time. The couple giggled at each other and continued whatever conversation they were having before Owen acknowledged me. It must be nice having someone to like but I wouldn't really know since most girls just didn't seem to appreciate the art of sarcasm and slaying final bosses with maxed out stats.

Come to think of it, though, I didn't really like many girls. Most females were whiny, annoying, mean-spirited, or too dim witted for my tastes. I won't lie – I was very attracted to many of the girls on the Total Drama show, but simply based on looks.

There was Beth. She did get prettier once her braces were removed but she wasn't drop dead gorgeous. Just average. And extremely clingy and annoying. Not a turn on.

Gwen was pretty attractive; nice body, nice face, and she had some brains. But that whole Goth stereotype wasn't fooling anyone. And she is kind of sleazy for being a home wrecker.

Lindsay. Oh dear, innocent, stupid Lindsay. That girl was given everything but a brain when she came into this world. Shame, really.

Bridgette was too green-peace for me. Always talking about the environment, being one with nature, and being passive-aggressive about living a vegetarian lifestyle. Besides, she clearly lets her sex drive make more decisions for her than her brain from the turnabouts in Total Drama Action and World Tour.

LeShawna was too vivacious and ethnic. And the way she spoke – please, this isn't some racial sitcom from the nineties, my dear.

Katie and Sadie. Hm. Katie was very pretty and she did have a kind heart, but her cling factor to Sadie was just uncontrollable. Oh well, those two were always too busy fawning over Justin or Trent.

Eva. Do I really need to explain?

And Courtney. My God, Courtney was perfect…until she went absolutely insane in Action just because of her mishap in the first season. Meh, she wasn't necessarily a huge loss to me. She was a threat to my own intelligence and educational hierarchy.

Which leaves me with Heather – snarky, mean, smart Heather. She had a nicest body out of all the girls on the island. Fair-skinned, silver eyes, long silky hair, beautiful legs – whoa, wait, what am I saying?

Heather is prime evil – an unstated understanding in the Total Drama world. Well… evil is more of an exaggeration. She was simply ambitious at most and sometimes she let that get in the way of being friendly with the other cast mates. Wait, why am I lying – that's what got in the way all the time. But she was a challenge. She made the meanest remarks and told it like it was, something I rather enjoyed in the female species.

"Look, look, Big O! Noah's being perverted!" I snapped my book shut and blushed out of anger and embarrassment. I really needed to stop thinking about girls and get back on the topic of Einstein's theories.

"Spare me of your lame deductions, Izzy,"

"Ohooo, Big O! Noah dares question my words!" What a nut job. I can't believe Owen actually finds this rambling _attractive_. I let my gaze bite into Izzy's wide eyes for another second before I returned to leafing through my book. Again, Izzy giggled maniacally before she whispered something into Owen's ear. I tried not to let my curiosity best me, but my eyes flicked to the side to see Owen's reaction. He looked surprised, then his face drew a blank, and suddenly he was smiling to himself and giggling. _Giggling_.

"Excuse me," I stopped being angry and Izzy and Owen stopped laughing to themselves like a pack of hyenas on laughing gas to see a doctor standing before us. He looked tired, stressed, and relieved to see us sitting there all at the same time. "Are you here to see Heather?

"Oh yea! Heather's a good old pal of ours!" Owen beamed up at the doctor, which he courteously returned back.

"Old _pal_?" I asked incredulously but the doctor was too busy listening to Owen mention all the good memories he had with Heather. But they weren't good memories, they were just bits of the show where Heather reprimanded him or did something malicious. Owen was too kind for his own sake, but I guess that's why he was always a fan favorite. Me? I wouldn't necessarily rank myself among his level, but I was definitely higher than Heather. Right?

Somewhere along the line, the doctor remembered we were here to visit and not to continue this endless banter of good old memories. He led us through halls bustling with kind nurses, scrambling interns with med labs, and a few visitors just lurking around curiously. I frowned at the atmosphere – my family had a legacy of producing doctors. My father was a surgeon and my mother was a nurse. My three eldest brothers and sisters were either in med school or trying to complete their residence whereas I studied the various textbooks my father gave me. I don't mind the idea of becoming a doctor but hospitals were just so… how do I say? Dreary?

"Heather! You have guests!" The doctor was saying this as we walked into a room filled with gifts and accompanied with the buzz of a working TV. I chanced a look at Heather.

When she heard the doctor's words, she had looked away from her television set with an expectant smile. But then she locked eyes with me and looked startled, embarrassed, and furious. Well gee, thanks for the warm welcome.

"I thought you said I had regulars today!" Heather hissed quickly. She was turning her face away from us and purposely combing her hair in front of her face. Hm, had it grown a couple of inches in these past few weeks? It looked dirty, no doubt. But long hair fitted her, I suppose.

"I'm sorry, it seems Patricia made a mistake and assumed it was Cody and Sierra again…" The doctor smiled at us sheepishly and Owen just made a nervous laugh. Odd. Cody and Sierra were considered regulars around here?

"That nurse is a worthless mule! I want a new one!"

"We'll discuss this later Heather. For now, talk with your friends for a bit and we'll send you some lunch and your next dosage of medications!" Despite sounding so cheery, the man looked really aggravated with her. Heather made a growl of anger and he rolled his eyes. He mumbled a small apology to us before hurrying out of the room, leaving us with that less-than-pleased queen bee.

"Heh, sooooo… How's the lunch around here?" I respected Owen for trying but really? _Food_?

"Fantastic." Heather didn't seem all that amused with Owen's question. Her arms were crossed defensively in front of her chest and she was hunching her back, creating a long curtain of hair around her face. I let my eyes wash over her arms to see her left appendage was bandaged lightly from her finger tips and up. The other had these bright pink and unruly marks, which were probably her healed injuries from the show.

"Oooooh, fantastic she says! Maybe the nurses put magic pixie dust in her meals to make it taste so good! I tried that once when I was locked away in solitary confinement – totally made the mashed potatoes taste AMAZINGGG!" Izzy rambled on and I rolled my eyes. Heather made a sound of annoyance and Owen's eyes widened in delight.

"Do you still have some, Izzy?"

"Oh you bet, Big O! C'mon, I'll show you real quick!"

I tried to stop them but when Owen's hungry, there was no stopping that giant train of hulking gluttony. Izzy was cackling maniacally and I could hear the big lug ask nearby bystanders where he could find the nearest burrito. I looked back at Heather to see she was sneering at me. Well I'll sneer right back, you annoying twat. She wasn't staring directly at me but her side vision alerted her of my reaction. Her eyes rolled in their sockets and she growled, turning her face away.

"Shouldn't you run along, little Noah? Your animals are wandering far from the ark."

"Oooh, biblical references. Like I've never heard that before."

"Oh I bet, just like you've never heard someone ask you where you got that cheap sweater vest."

"Oh ha ha, Heather. Your insults are as clean cut as your ratty hair."

At that, Heather gasped and combed her hair out of her face to inspect her strands. She glared at me indirectly, and dropped the current piece of hair back to her shoulder. She made an annoyed growl, tossed her nose into the air, and looked back at the TV. I smirked and walked to her bed to take a seat in the empty chair next to it. She scowled but did not tear her eyes away from the glowing screen.

"I thought I told you to leave,"

"Those two are my ride. Can't leave without them,"

"Boy genius doesn't know how to drive yet? Shocking!"

"Heather's still a mean bitch? Shocking!" Heather made another sound of anger under her breath and rolled her eyes. "But really – I am shocked. I thought you were a catatonic shell by the way—"

"Sierra worded it?" I looked at her with a surprised look. Her eyes were still trained on the TV but the corners of her lips turned upward slightly, looking happy she finally had the upper hand on me. "Lemme guess, you're here because of that sob story she posted online?"

"It's not exactly a sob story, but I do admit there was a whole bunch of unnecessary cheese at the beginning. I do feel sorry for you."

"Don't. I didn't ask for your pity." She was sharp with me and that got me annoyed. Okay, sorry for showing some compassion you ungrateful female.

"Whatever then."

"Yea, whatever."

I stared at her TV, pissed off and embarrassed to have been weaseled into that uncomfortable position. A pregnant silence passed over us and for a quick second, I thought about walking out to look for Owen and Izzy. But then Heather cleared her throat and tossed her hair over her shoulder, turning her face away from me.

"Look… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that…"

"Whoa, you're apologizing to _me_? Quick, call a nurse! You must be feeling unwell!"

"Oh shut up, nerdling!" I grinned; Heather was obviously blushing and she was having a hard time hiding her pink face from me. "You get what I mean!"

"Hmmm, I don't think I do. Say it again?"

"I'm sorry!"

"What? Turn your face my way; I can't hear you clearly…"

"I said, **I'm sorry**!" Heather almost screamed as she said this, swiveling her face towards me with furious eyes that burned into mine. I jumped a little at her reaction and held her gaze for a short moment. Her eyes twinkled with arrogance at my response but almost immediately it dulled, the emotion turning into fear and suddenly becoming timid. She shrank away from my side and let her hair cascade into a dark curtain over her face.

"Thanks…" I felt a little guilty now as I sat in my chair, staring curiously at Heather. She was certainly on some hard dosages of medication – one minute she was angry and mean and the next she was acting like a child that was being scolded for the first time in their life. She shrugged a little before she hesitantly tilted her head up to peek at me through her bangs. Our eyes met again, my dark eyes meeting her silver ones, and I felt something churn in my stomach.

"Is something on my face?" I asked when she continued to peer at me through her black locks. I saw her lips twitch into a smile and her eyes looked back down.

"No, there's nothing. I just like how you don't treat me like some kind of mental case."

"Why would I? You're just Heather."

"Hm, just Heather? That's really reassuring, nerdling."

"Oh shut up, you know you're more than that," Her eyes flicked back up towards me expectantly. I sighed. "You're everything a girl wishes she was, stupid. Tall, skinny, smart, gorgeous – " My eyes widened and I slapped a hand to my mouth. What the hell was I saying!

"Smart, huh? I've always aspired to be smart." She was toying with me, now. She was sitting up in her bed now, her lips curled into a little smile, and her eyes half-lidded. She was enjoying the predicament I was in and she was milking every second of it. Damn it.

"Shut up, you are so insufferable!"

"Hmmm, if that's true, why are you still here then? Huh, little Noah?" That damn smile was swallowing me. Her eyes were twinkling in the dull fluorescents of the room. She may have been pale, with sunken bags under her slanted eyes, but she still looked pretty to me. Oh goddammit, there I go again!

"Whatever, you know I can't leave until those idiots come back up here." Heather hummed her response in a tittering melody, signifying she was pleased with my wording, and looked back at her TV. It was quiet in the room for a long while again – my face didn't feel as hot after the first round of commercials rolled through and my heart had stopped racing. Heather's smile had fallen as well and now she looked like she was deep in thought.

"You're number three."

Three? I tried to think of the number's significance but nothing came to me. I turned my face towards Heather with a questioningly look.

"You're the third person to make me feel normal again. People think I'm a basket case in here or that I'll break any second. My parents never want to be around me – but they never have in the first place – and my siblings aren't as understanding. The surgeons and nurses gossip about me all the time, wondering when my next bipolar episode will be. And the other people from the Total Drama show – they don't know what to say. Even Cody and Sierra were awkward at first.

"But you… you're something else, Noah. You're still a cynical bastard that doesn't give a crap about sugar coating things. And you make me feel… like I used to, I guess. You know?"

Heather was looking at me know with an anxious smile playing on her lips. I stared at them for a long time, tracing every little detail over with my eyes. What was I supposed to say? Her smile was falling now and she looked hurt – oh crap.

"No, I don't know what you mean." I was smirking at my comment, a habit I had adopted long ago in my childhood. Heather glared at me but there was a hint of a similar smirk swimming in her eyes.

"You are such a dick, you know?" We laughed, despite trying to hold our intense stares. Under my light chuckles, I was startled. I was actually getting along with Heather and she was actually _thanking_ me for something I had done unintentionally. And I had to admit, it made me feel good. How many people got to say they made queen bee feel good about herself? And the way she looked at me – I feel idiotic for admitting it, but it did make my stomach make pleasant flips.

Surprisingly, we talked for a few hours. We talked about a lot of things, too. Heather described how far along her recovery was. It was already about six weeks and she was done with surgeries. All she needed to do know was go through some physical therapy to make sure none of the scar tissue solidified and immobilized her. We also talked about that stupid website Sierra had built. Heather told me she had been pissed and screamed at the fan girl for a long while, but she ended up shrugging it off and letting Sierra keep the site alive.

Then we talked about her time in the hospital. When we lingered on the subject of her family's visiting hours, she froze up and frowned, so we dropped that topic almost immediately. Then we talked about my family – how hectic it was to be the youngest child out of the nine other siblings the Mehta clan had borne. She seemed to understand all the pressure that was weighted on my shoulders, which was another thing that surprised me about Heather.

And then we talked about Total Drama. She got angry quickly when we reminisced all the challenges we'd gone through since the first season. She went through more crap than anyone else – getting her electrocuted by a jellyfish, burning her eyebrows off, getting locked in a freezer, licking Owen's armpit, having her hair buzzed off, losing her wigs, having to kiss _Duncan_, gaining weight after a humiliating internet war, losing a tooth, getting stretched a few more inches by 'ye olde' torture methods, getting attacked by wild animals, eating a disgusting array of Chinese food, getting _burned_ to a point where she had to be hospitalized – the list goes on.

But she smiled when I mentioned other things. Like when Gwen got shot up with Cody's epipen. Or when Courtney got her ass hauled off in that embarrassing double elimination. In those moments, Heather's eyes crinkled with sadistic joy and I smirked at how well things were moving.

"Hey guys, what's up?" At the familiar voices, we looked at the doors to see Owen and Izzy. Both of them looked rugged; hair in a mess, outfits askew, and food painted all over their face. Izzy's eyes twitched neurotically while Owen looked like he was going to pass out from another food coma.

"Sorry we took so long! Big O found this really awesome Chinese buffet not too far from here, and there was this all you can eat contest going on, and I was like 'WHOA, WE SHOULD TOTALLY DO THAT, BIG O!' And he went, 'WHOA, WE TOTALLY SHOULD!' And then I pulled out my magic pixie dust from my rucksack and threw it in the air and all the Chinese people were like, 'AIYA, 'NOTHA CRAZY WIDE-EYED PERSON RUINING THOUSAND-YEAR-OLD DUCK EGG!' And then I went, 'PSHAW, SHOWS WHAT YOU KNOW!' And then–!"

"We get the idea, Izzy!" I was annoyed that this conversation was being cut short. I don't talk to many girls at school and the Total Drama girls I conversed with weren't all that bright to begin with. Heather put up a fight though when it came to wits and her humor did amuse mine…

"Sorry, Heather… I got you an egg roll since you're Chinese and all, but I ended up eating it on the way back…" Owen belched and groaned at a rumbling in his stomach.

"I'm _Japanese_, idiot."

"Oh… Guess there's no harm done, then! Hehehehe – oh! I've gotta go potty!" Owen stopped his nervous laughter when his stomach rumbled again with more ferocity and he was running out the door quickly. Izzy screamed she would help him push – oh dear god – and followed suit. Both of us stared at the door before rolling our eyes in unison.

"Why do you hang out with them, again?" Heather asked harshly but I gave her an indifferent shrug.

"I make odd friends. What can I say?" She huffed in aggravation but I could tell she was just doing that to make me try harder for her attention. I smiled, ready to open my mouth for another topic we could talk about, but then there was a stern cough at the door. I thought it might have been Owen but there was no way that eating machine could push out… well… let's not go into detail about that.

I looked back to see Heather's doctor waiting at the door with a nurse behind him.

"I'm sorry, but we'll have to cut this visit short. You need to take your medication again, Heather, and you'll need to get some rest for your first session of physical therapy tomorrow afternoon. But feel free to visit tomorrow!" The doctor looked hopefully at me and I paused. I looked to Heather to see she looked disappointed – maybe because of the physical therapy or was it because I was leaving.

"Oh, alright then. I guess I'll get going then…"

I tucked my book under my arm and stood up from the bedside chair but Heather quickly grabbed my shirt sleeve. Her doctor made a sound of disapproval because she was using her bandaged arm but she ignored him, looking into my eyes pleadingly. It was really odd how her eyes shimmered with hope. Nevertheless, my stomach flipped again at the way she was looking at me.

"You'll come back soon?"

My mouth had fallen open slightly at the request. Was she being serious? Heather noticed my astonished look and quickly recomposed herself.

"Not like it matters! I don't care, really…" She turned her face toward the TV again. However, her eyes flickered to the side to chance a look at my face before quickly looking at the TV screen.

"Whatever you want, Heather. I'll see you soon."

She tried to hide the smile drawing across her lips and I couldn't help but grin myself. I sidestepped the people treating the girl to wait in the lobby for Owen and Izzy.

Even though it was their idea to come in the first place, I was glad they didn't spend any time with her. Being alone with her made me realize that we had more things in common then I would have imagined. And she wasn't evil at all, just misunderstood. Hm, or maybe I'm just misunderstanding the situation and expecting more then what I should from this situation. Whatever, it's not like it's a big deal to me.

I sat down in a chair, ironically the same one I was waiting in before this pleasant surprise, and opened my book. My eyes scanned the words but it wasn't like I was reading anything. My thoughts wandered and I realized I had arrived to the same question I had asked myself earlier.

How do I end up making such odd friends?

* * *

AN: What's this? A possible love interest? Or is it all a façade? Who knows, you'll just have to wait and see where Noah fits in this equation!

Anyways, I dunno if you can tell but I do enjoy a little Noah/Heather. My favorite couples for the series are Alejandro/Heather, Duncan/Heather, and Noah/Heather and more than likely you'll see stories for each couple in the future (a Duncan/Heather ficlet will be coming in the near future!).

I hope you all enjoyed this bit from Noah's perspective, as well. I hope I kept him in character for this chapter and that you all enjoyed it! Please leave your thoughts behind and let me know what you think! That includes predictions, too! You guys come up with some very interesting ideas!

Again, I hope this chapter satisfies your thirst for an update and you'll wait for the next patiently! I'll try to keep up with the updates! Until next time!


	7. The Burromuerto Family

AN: And here it is, readers! The long awaited continuation of Humiliated Hawaiian Flower! Thank you again to everyone who kept reading and reviewing, and especially to those who urged me to continue the story! I thought about this one a lot because I still watch TDWT and I've recently watched nine episodes of Total Drama Revenge of the Island! I really like this season, but I definitely miss Heather and Alejandro…! Anyways, thanks for waiting and here is chapter 7 out of the 25 chapters I planned for this story!

* * *

Five weeks.

That's how long it had been according to Alejandro. Five weeks since he threw his pineapple sacrifice into the volcano. Five weeks since he had won Total Drama World Tour and his prize money. Five weeks since he had ruined the life of the one girl he truly had feelings for. Five weeks since he had seen her fiery gaze locked with his icy stare.

Alejandro looked away from his calendar and shifted in his bed with a grumble of annoyance. He was still aggravated with himself for falling back in love with Heather, but he was angrier that he still had not been able to contact Sierra and weasel out information from her. There was no chance that she'd tell him anything willingly, but Alejandro still had methods of getting what he wanted. Sierra would be easy to crack – that is, if he could only find some way of getting through to her besides her Tweeter account.

There were rumors among TD fans that Sierra ran another blog dedicated to Heather, but any evidence of such a blog was traced back to overly enthusiastic fans of the show gossiping online. Completely useless information to his endeavors. There were other rumors Alejandro had heard that Chris McLean was renewing the show for another season, which initially interested Alejandro, but then he heard the original cast mates had a chance of being replaced. Again, useless.

He stood up from his bed and stretched, looking around wearily before looking down at himself. Despite being a tired wreck from trying to find Heather, Alejandro was still clean, crisp, and perfect. He flexed his bad hand gingerly – he had his surgery not long after his date with Courtney and had new skin grafted onto his injuries. The scar tissue was still healing but was in those final stages, leaving a slightly bright and unruly trail of skin that marked what was old and new skin. It was an ugly mark, but for the most part forgettable. His hand could flex with some minimal strains, making the appendage usable once again.

He wondered how Heather was doing. How were her injuries? She had gotten the brunt of all the lava and the smell of her burning flesh was etched in Alejandro's nose forever. The reminiscing caused Alejandro's stomach to flip unpleasantly and he could feel his bile struggle to shoot up his throat. Shakily, he brought his unmarred hand to rub his temple. He breathed deeply until the thoughts were pushed away from his mind.

"_Mijo_, are you okay?"

Alejandro jerked from his stupor and looked at his door. His mother was staring at him from his bedroom with a concerned look on his face. Once she was noticed, Mrs. Burromuerto stepped inside the room and looked around at the mess her son had accumulated. Across the floor were numerous papers – some computer codes, print outs of the internet rumors Alejandro came across, and official copies of his former cast mate's information from the show. His desk was a similar mess, only covered in a flood of post-it-notes that had quick phrases scribbled on them only Alejandro could understand.

"_Mijo_, what's going on? Are you doing some kind of research, or something?" The youngest Burromuerto hesitated, unsure of what exactly to tell his mother. From what he knew of, his mother was not the biggest fan of the Total Drama shows, nor was she happy that her son participated in them. She was just elated when he came home with only one injury and a million-dollars richer.

"…Ah…_sí,_ mama. I'm just…trying to look for someone…" Alejandro lamely answered. His mother raised a curious brow.

"_¿Quién_?" Alejandro winced. He could not lie to this sweet woman…

"…Heather, mama…" At the sound of her name, Mrs. Burromuerto's faced hardened. Her soft face suddenly had tight lines pulling at her lips and her brows furrowed together in a mix of confusion and anger. To her, Heather was a temptress – the snake in the Garden of Eden that tempted her son to do horrible things in order to win. She refused to believe her sons had mean streaks to them. They were just overly competitive, like her husband. People like Heather, on the other hand, were different.

"_Heather_?" She almost spat the name with distaste. "Why, Alejandro? _Ella es una serpiente_! She caused nothing but trouble on that show! You and I both know it!"

Alejandro could feel his temper rising as his mother continued to bash Heather. She was not generous with merciful words – she called Heather every harsh name in the book and her face became increasingly red as the words rolled out of her mouth.

"Mama, she's not like that –" Alejandro tried to cut in but his mother held up a finger that silenced him. He bit his lip angrily and his mother's eyes narrowed coldly.

"No, Alejandro, she is. I don't want to hear you say that name in this house again or continue this nonsense of finding her. She will be the end of you. _Limpiar este lío ahora_." Before Alejandro could get a final word, Mrs. Burromuerto spun on her heel and out the door. Everything felt hot to Alejandro. He was almost sure he could see red from how mad he was.

He suppressed a scream of frustration by kicking a sheet of paper with Chris' face into the air. He quickly turned away from the door and threw himself into his desk chair, trying to calm himself down by checking his resources again.

After he clicked through several sites, his pent up frustration only seemed to build up because there seemed to be no update in his search. Still no word of Sierra and still nothing on where Heather was staying. He was about slam his laptop shut when he heard a disapproving sound from the door. Thinking it was his Mrs. Burromuerto again, Alejandro turned around with an exasperated look on his face. Only it wasn't Mrs. Burromuerto.

His blood ran cold to see José leaning against his doorframe with a lazy smirk on his face. The smirk on his older brother's face widened when Alejandro's mouth closed slowly and his burning eyes turned into an intense glare. José took this as invitation to step inside and he whistled a sound of approval when Alejandro jerked out of his seat defensively.

"Sup, bro?" José said casually. Everything about José was casual; his tight white shirt, wrinkled plaid shirt, and those scruffy jeans that just screamed "I-don't-care-what-you-think-but-you-know-I'm-totally-hot." José examined the room curiously before he picked up a stray piece of paper stuck to his expensive snake-skin boots. "What's this, playing stalker?"

"Get out." It wasn't a request – it was an order. Venom practically dripped from the words. It would have been more menacing if José hadn't laughed hysterically.

"Wow, that's a good one. Way to scare me, Al," José chuckled and tossed the sheet out of his hand to pick up another off the floor. The previous paper only hand a name and information printed on it. The one José was holding now was one of many copies Alejandro had printed out of Heather.

A lump formed in Alejandro's throat as his brother examined the paper up and down. José's face was devoid of any emotion other than sick curiosity, and Alejandro recognized that quick glint of wickedness run through his eyes.

"She's quite a looker. This is what's-her-face, right? The one you fucked over? Oh, pun _totally_ intended, Al," Alejandro's eyes flashed dangerously at his brother's vulgarity and he wanted to ram his body into José's. He wanted to inflict as much pain as possible on the older man for speaking of Heather in such a way but his body was glued to the ground. José smirked and tossed the paper into the air.

"Why are you doing this? Another _juego demente_ of yours?"

"I have no reason to tell you, _basura_. Get out, now." José made a mock sound of shock and acted scandalized, crumpling the picture of Heather to his chest and bring a hand to his forehead daintily.

"_Al_, how could you say that to _me_? Your _favorite_ brother, of all people!" The strength suddenly reappeared in Alejandro and he felt himself lunge towards José. There was a surprised yelp and a clatter as furniture fell from the two Burromuertos tangling themselves around each other angrily.

Alejandro didn't think, he just acted. He pulled his right fist back and connected it square into José's nose. He felt his brother struggle under him and then there was a blinding pain at the side of his head. He was pretty sure José managed to slam his elbow into the side of skull, but the lines around Alejandro blurred and his body felt numb.

There was a deafening tone in his ears and Alejandro blinked several times to try and make sense of what happened. He could feel himself try to lay more punches into José and could feel his brother thrash violently against him, but then he was being jerked back roughly. He landed harshly on his pelvis and winced, feeling a quick smack upside the head and hearing the low hum of his father's voice.

He blinked once, twice, three times before he could finally see José being held back by Carlos. The middle brother was spitting with rage and screaming obscenities in their native language at Alejandro. He looked up to see his father, anger distorting his handsome face and his lips moving quickly. Alejandro still could not make out the words but he was sure he was being reprimanded by how severe his father looked at him.

"…_dro_! You hear me! Clean yourself up and get your act together!" Those were the words Alejandro could make out before his father advanced on José, giving the middle child the same angry spiel to Alejandro's satisfaction. José stopped thrashing wildly in Carlos' arms but he was breathing hard and fast, shooting furious glares at his younger brother. Alejandro was pleased to see a thick trail of blood pouring out his nose, but could taste his own coppery fluids in his mouth.

Mr. Burromuero finally dismissed José and left the room quickly. José jerked his body out of Carlos grip and huffed.

"You'll regret this, _puta_. You'll see." José hissed, spitting blood onto the crumpled picture of Heather that fell to the floor and stomping out in blind fury. Alejandro let an incredulous laugh escape his lips. Carlos looked down at him with disapproval but said nothing, leaving his room like the rest of his family.

Although he was tired from the struggle, Alejandro could still feel rage pulse through his body. He grunted, pulled himself up, and examined his injured hand automatically. He had stretched it a bit too much; there was a searing pain along that unruly path of skin but no visible tear. Gingerly, he massaged it before he begrudgingly walked towards his bathroom to wash his sore face.

* * *

The day ended awkwardly to say at the very least. Alejandro felt like a one-man army against the Burromuerto household. His mother was still miffed with the Heather business he mentioned to her, and both his father and José were angry about his reckless antics. Carlos remained to be a neutral party and chose to exchange few words with his family.

No one would look Alejandro in the eye at dinner. In the end, he excused himself from the table after eating very little. It was not a big deal to him – he had more pressing matters to attend to. But despite his avid search and piles of research, Alejandro came up empty handed. He was becoming increasingly frustrated with his results, as well as increasingly desperate.

He wanted badly to just see Heather one last time – to tell her how he really felt and how he'd take it all back if he could. Even if she didn't forgive him, he'd be content with just seeing her, but what if there was the possibility that she returned his feelings? Alejandro wouldn't take his chances and miss an opportunity to find out how Heather felt.

It was five weeks, four days, and thirteen hours since he had last seen her now. He was staring at the glare of his computer screen, not really absorbing anything it had to offer. He was just mulling things in his head, thinking of possible outcomes of reuniting with the feisty manipulator.

In one fantasy, Heather did not forgive him. He expected as much; his fantasy self tried to voice an apology but Heather would have none of it. There was screaming and many things were thrown at him like flower vases, medical contraptions, and whatever else you find in a burn patient's hospital room. He left the room broken hearted and bruised, and he never heard from Heather again.

Alejandro blinked and changed the pace of his daydreaming.

He was back at the start of the fantasy now, a bouquet of exotic flowers in his hands this time around and his heart on his sleeve. He walked into the room without Heather noticing this time, and when she did look up, she was too shocked to say anything. Alejandro quickly took advantage of the situation and poured his heart out to the girl. She said nothing. She listened. And Alejandro just kept talking until his voice ran hoarse and he could say nothing more. His silence was greeted with a smile.

Oh, how wonderful that would be. Alejandro grinned to himself at the thought. He realized once he had stopped daydreaming that he had idly pulled up the official Total Drama website. He was staring at her picture and admiring the confidence in that malicious smirk of hers. The grin widened when Alejandro reconfirmed how much he loved this girl. The resentment he held towards hating her had almost completely disappeared, leaving only immense feeling of devotion to her. Of course there was still that weight of unyielding guilt burdening Alejandro's shoulders. The times he wasn't busy looking for traces of Heather or fantasizing of a happy ending, Alejandro was wracked with remorse. There were times where he had to bring a hand to his face to hold himself together.

But that was an obstacle Alejandro would need to beat in the future. Regardless of how Heather responded to his apology, he would still live knowing she was partially deformed because of him, and he would just need to accept it.

His train of thought was interrupted by the familiar ring of his cellphone. He glanced at the device on his table and recognized the caller as Courtney. He frowned.

That was weird; he hadn't really spoken to Courtney since they had last seen each other. He was so wrapped up with trying to locate Heather that he left little time to communicate with his "supposed" girlfriend. He had thought she had got a clue and just assumed their relationship was over. By the looks of the phone call, however, Alejandro assumed the opposite.

"Hello?" He said into the phone while simultaneously shutting off his computer.

"Hey, _you_!" Courtney sounded excited – the exact opposite of what an ex-girlfriend sounded like. "Where are you!"

"…_Home_?" How else was he supposed to answer that? Courtney made a happy squeal and Alejandro could practically see the girl do a small dance in place.

"This is so perfect! I can't believe you went out of your way to do this!"

"Wait, what? What do you mean, 'do this?'" Courtney giggled on the other end.

"_Oh_, don't try and play coy, Alejandro! Now come down stairs and open the door for me!" Wait – _what_? Alejandro's heart literally dropped into the pit of his stomach at Courtney's words. Instinctively he ran to his bedroom window and threw the curtains aside. Sure enough, there she was. Miss CIT was standing on his doorstep with two suitcases besides her and an excited look on her face. She was looking around his yard with amazement and to Alejandro's misfortune, she looked up and met his gaze.

He tried to move away from the window but he saw and heard Courtney's reaction; she made a happy giggling sound and he saw her wave at him. There was no chance of avoiding her now. He could hear her urge him to come down stairs again, but his body refused.

The doorbell was ringing now and Alejandro was getting a grasp on how real this sick joke was. He heard the door open and the other line on his phone clicked off. Courtney's voice was echoing inside his large house now.

Before he knew it he was flying down the steps to see who had let her in, and stumbled into the living room to see his confused mother conversing with the girl.

"Mrs. Burromuerto, correct? I'm Courtney Guzman! You don't know how happy I am to finally meet you and the rest of your family!" Courtney was already extending her hand out to shake Mrs. Burromuerto's, and the older woman just looked quizzically at her.

"I'm sorry…Courtney, was it? I don't think I quite understand what's going…" Courtney stared at her blankly before her eyebrows knitted together in a similar bout of confusion.

"…Didn't Alejandro tell you? He planned for me to finally meet the family and said you were okay with me staying for a few weeks…"

Alejandro had planned no such thing and he was about to voice his objections when a figure whizzed past him and next to his mother. It only took him two seconds to recognize who it was and what was going on.

"Mama, it was supposed to be a surprise! Al wanted you and Papa to meet his new girlfriend, so he asked me to help him plan a get together! She lives a little far but it would be too much trouble to get a hotel, so we thought she could stay in the guest bedroom. That's fine, right?" José's voice was working his mother like she was melted butter. There were initial signs of reluctance in her eyes, but once José looked at her earnestly and she looked back at Courtney's hopeful face, the beautiful woman smiled.

"Ah, _sí, sí_! Of course you can stay Courtney, please come in!" They all exchanged smiles as Courtney pulled in her luggage. When she caught sight of Alejandro, she made a breathless sound before quickly running to the young man and embracing him. Alejandro refrained from shrinking away, trying his hardest to naturally return the hug. But it felt all wrong; Courtney's body didn't mold against his like Heather's.

"I've missed you so much! I was worried when you stopped calling, but now I know you really are serious about us…!" Courtney looked at him affectionately and Alejandro just stared back, flabbergasted. But Courtney didn't seem to care – she simply pecked his cheek and went back to her stuff, following Mrs. Burromuerto in the direction of the guest room.

When the women left, it was just Alejandro and José in their luxurious living room. Alejandro looked back at José to see his brother smirking triumphantly at him. José walked towards him in the direction of his own bedroom, but stopped when he was beside Alejandro. He narrowed his eyes malevolently and whispered so lightly that Alejandro had to strain to make out the words clearly.

"I told you you'd regret our little disagreement, _Al_. If I were you, I'd hide all your stuff about that whore of yours unless you want Miss CIT to find out how _faithful_ you've really been."

José said nothing more and for once, Alejandro felt too empty to react.

* * *

AN: And there you go, folks! It's a little shorter than usual to leave you wanting more...heheh! Thank you for reading this and I hope you all review! Please tell me your thoughts, your predictions, anything! Why not even tell me what you think of the new TD season?

Anyways, hopefully there will be an update next month! I'll try to push out two chapters, but I have midterms coming up and I definitely need to focus on school! I'm just glad to be active again!

Again, thanks for reading and checking up on the story! Until next time!


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